Dead Man's Hand
by Tigergirl
Summary: Everything he knew fell apart in a single day. Life hasn't been the same since he was dealt the dead man's hand. Now, just when he thinks he has left his past behind him, he is pulled back to it. Follow along as he encounters old friends, new challenges, and unleashes a power not even he knew he possessed.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Dead Man's Hand

**Author:** Tigergirl

**Rated: **T (just for safety's sake)

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything of the Ronin Warriors. Just own the original characters starring in this fan fic.

**Summary:** Everything he knew fell apart in a single day. Life hasn't been the same since he was dealt the dead man's hand. Now, just when he thinks he has left his past behind him, he is pulled back to it. Follow along as he encounters old friends, new challenges, and unleashes a power not even he knew he possessed.

CHAPTER ONE

An Ace of Spades. An Ace of Clubs. An Eight of Spades. An Eight of Clubs. A Two of Hearts. He knew the sight well. It haunted him every time he played Poker. He always felt as though it defined his life.

The other companions looked up when he folded his cards face down and stood. Without saying a word, he swung his bag onto his shoulder, pushed his chair in and walked away. The guy that had been sitting the closest to him lifted his cards to look at them.

"What was that all about?" the only woman in the group asked.

"He has a dead man's hand," the guy said, placing the cards face down.

The other man nodded his head in understanding while the woman looked downright confused. He proceeded to explain everything to her.

"I've only known Sawyer for about a year now. He doesn't share much about himself, but I do know getting a hand like that bothers him," he told her.

Meanwhile, while the woman puzzled over this odd behavior, Sawyer left the building with his head up and eyes forward. He traveled across the campus to the bus stop where he jumped on it just before the doors closed. Sawyer walked down the long length of the bus to the very back. Most of the time he drove his vehicle over to the college, but some days he just felt like riding the bus.

He watched the buildings pass by as the bus departed from downtown. The bus headed up the road towards his destination, taking a few stops along the way. Finally, the bus stopped outside an apartment complex out past the interstate and near the woods. The complex consisted of several cabins spread out on the grounds.

"Thanks," Sawyer mumbled to the bus driver as he climbed off.

He jogged across the complex to his cabin which sat at the very back and closest to a large acreage of woods. He slipped his keys out of his jeans pocket, jabbed it into the lock and jiggled it open. The door swung open without a sound and he closed it quietly behind him.

"I'm home," he called softly.

He wasn't expecting a response. His companion was usually taking an afternoon nap around this time, but he always called out to him anyway. Sawyer placed his bag on the armchair as he passed through the living and disappeared into his bedroom. He pulled his shirt up over his head to throw it over into the laundry basket. He replaced it with his collared work shirt that he had laid out on his bed that morning.

After changing his shirt, Sawyer took his small-rimmed glasses off his face. He didn't really need to wear glasses but they matched his looks well. His dark colored hair was dusted with frosty, blended in white highlights that seemed natural. His eyes were an unusual autumn orange.

Sawyer put his glasses back on after cleaning the lens with his shirt. He called out to his companion as he grabbed up his helmet and headed for the door.

"I'm going early to work. I'll be back later tonight!" he shouted.

/…/

"Hey, Sawyer!"

"Hi, Marcus."

The two exchanged a small sideways high five as Marcus walked by. Sawyer finished folding up the towels and closed the dryer door. He placed the hot towels on the counter and walked over to the sink where he washed his hands thoroughly. He dried his hands before grabbing up a clipboard. He wrote his name, the name of the animal and the date and time.

Sawyer clipped a small hand sanitizer bottle to his belt loop and snatched up a key from beside the clipboard. Walking out into the open area, he walked over to the far wall. He unlocked the row and, grabbing underneath it, pulled it out. He was careful when opening the small enclosure and reaching in for his first animal of the day. Once it was in his arms, Sawyer closed up the row and locked it.

He handled the Inland Bearded Dragon with care by cradling it on its stomach down his arm with its tail hanging out from his hand. The head lay halfway down the length of his arm and pointed towards him. The creature was quiet and stayed mostly still as a weight on his arm. Sawyer smiled as a pair of boys, obviously brothers, approached him.

"Cool! Can we touch it?" asked the youngest.

Sawyer nodded, indicating with his other hand where they could pet the creature.

"Use one or two fingers. No, no, no! Don't touch up there. Down here," he pointed out softly.

"What is it?" asked the oldest of the two.

"This is called an Inland Bearded Dragon. His name is Koopa. He likes to eat crickets and worms," Sawyer told them.

The two boys petted the Bearded Dragon gently and carefully. The younger of the two brought up an interesting question.

"Why do they call it a dragon? It doesn't breathe fire," he said.

Sawyer chuckled. Kids had the most interesting thoughts. They moved on to look at the other small creatures in the building, but only after getting a drop of hand sanitizer each for their hands. Sawyer spent the next few minutes having people walk up to pet Koopa while he fielded their questions.

When Koopa started squirming around, Sawyer placed him back in his home and locked it back up. After thoroughly washing his hands, he took out his next creature, a small ball python named Nana. The snake curled around his right arm and snuck its head partially up the sleeve of his shirt. Sawyer chuckled quietly as he felt the body of the snake stop moving so it was gripping him tightly.

/_I wouldn't be surprised if she went to sleep on me again._/

Sawyer was brought out of his thoughts by the Director of Public Relations approaching him. She had another woman with her who was dressed professionally in a business suit.

"Mrs. Halloon, I'd like you to meet Sawyer Thompson. He's been with us for a few years now. Four, right?" the Director asked, diverting her attention to Sawyer.

"Five, mam," Sawyer politely corrected.

"What is it that you do, Mr. Thompson?" the woman, Mrs. Halloon, asked.

"I do a little bit of everything. I fix meals for some of the animals, assist the veterinarian, and travel off-site to schools. Mostly, I work here in the Education building. I clean the tanks and feed the animals before we open. Then I take out the animals to educate the public," Sawyer answered.

The woman praised him for his dedication to the zoo before moving on with the Director who flashed him a grateful smile. Sawyer went through the motions of work with taking out animals until it was time to call it a day. Someone else was due to close the Education building tonight, despite Sawyer having volunteered.

He finished signing the last creature back in on the clipboard and bid his supervisor a good night. Sawyer walked along the back roads of the zoo to the back clubhouse for employees. There were two employees standing near the checkout computer but their heads were up and their eyes on the television mounted in the top corner.

"What's up, guys?" Sawyer asked, moving around them to sign-out on the computer.

Neither one of them answered him as they stared up at the television. He shook his head with a chuckle as he typed in his employee number.

"_Meteorologists are baffled by the sudden and strange formation of clouds that have descended upon the country._"

Sawyer slowed his moves through signing-out as he listened in.

"_Only within the last hour has the weather taken a turn for the worst in Japan. Dark clouds have descended upon the city of Toyama, despite the absence of activity on the Doppler radar._"

Sawyer's hand froze just over the touch screen. Fear gripped his heart yet he kept his gaze away from the television.

"_The dark clouds cover the entire area of Toyama. Witnesses say they appeared suddenly and quickly. There has been no rain thus far, only thunder and lightning._"

Sawyer unfroze, quickly finished signing off, and zipped outside. As he shut the door behind him, he took out his cell phone and hit speed dial. He waited to speak until he heard the telltale click of someone answering.

"Are you okay?"

"…_I'm fine_."

Sawyer frowned as he started walking down the back dirt roads to where his vehicle was parked.

"You're lying," he said point blank.

There was a pause on the other side of the line then a sigh could be heard.

"_You saw the news, didn't you?_"

"**Yes.** What does it mean?"

"_*sigh* I'll see you in the morning, Sawyer._"

He started to protest, but the person on the other line cut him off.

"_I have to make sure everyone here is settled. Please don't worry._"

Sawyer whispered a farewell and good night before hanging up his phone. He let out a loud sigh as he stopped next to his vehicle.

"Easy for you to say," he mumbled.

END OF CHAPTER ONE

**Author's Note: Here is the first chapter of "Dead Man's Hand." I have been working on this story on and off. I am curious to see if it will generate any interest in readers & reviewers.**


	2. Chapter 2

**jrzgrl02:** Don't you just love me? I love writing fan fics, especially RW. I'll be interested to see if any of your hypothesis were close. You'll be finding out below Sawyer's direct connection to Toyama. As always, I will keep up the suspense. Peace and girl power!

CHAPTER TWO

That night, Sawyer had a restless sleep.

/…/

"_You guys can do anything!"_

_Laughter. Cheers around._

/…/

Sawyer rolled over and gripped his bedcovers tightly. Sweat started to drip down his forehead with his eyes tightly screwed shut.

/…/

"_You're the greatest!"_

_Smile. Hug._

"_Thanks. You're pretty awesome, too."_

/…/

The young man started mumbling incoherently and shaking. A large figure woke up from his usual place on the other side of the house.

/…/

"_Can I talk to you about something?"_

"_Can it wait? I'm a little tired right now."_

_Small smile. "Sure. It can wait. I'm not going anywhere."_

/…/

The figure moved through the house quietly. Then it stopped in the open doorway of Sawyer's room. It was sad to see Sawyer experiencing such distress.

/…/

_Two lifeless bodies lay on the ground. His heart clenched in pain and his eyes watered. How could this have happened?_

"_No!"_

/…/

Sawyer gasped as pain wracked his body and mind. His companion grew worried and crossed the room to lick him on the face. He nudged the man's hand, trying to coax him awake.

/…/

_He was standing in the woods with his head down. He had already cried out all the tears he could. He still couldn't believe they were gone. It was all his fault. The heartache spread to his entire body._

_S-sn-snap. He lifted his head and turned around to face one of his friends. However, as he stood facing the blonde, he couldn't help but feel that something was off. Sage's smile sent shivers down his back._

"_They're dead. Don't take it so hard."_

_His jaw threatened to drop to the ground. What. in. the. Hell?! The expression on his face spurred the light haired ronin to continue._

"_They died for a reason," he said in a calm voice._

_He narrowed his eyes in confusion and mild disgust._

"_We're supposed to protect innocents, Sage. They died because the warlords distracted us and struck when our backs were turned," he growled angrily._

_Sage shrugged his shoulders uncaring._

"_Or made it was destined to happen?"_

_The fellow ronin was getting a weird vibe from the warrior of light. It reminded him of the warlords and it was starting to creep him out. _

"_What are you talking about?" he said in a serious voice, all humor and anger gone from his voice._

"_After we defeated Talpa, you were unconscious for a few days. During that time, the warlords found us and met with us. They made an offer we couldn't refuse; the gift of immortality."_

_He shook his head in disbelief. "You took the deal."_

_Sage let out a loud laugh that sent shivers down his sore back._

"_That we did, but we had to get rid of those two before we could reveal who we had now become."_

_That was all it took to unleash his anger. He summoned his armor in the blink of an _

_eye. He drew his weapon and aimed it at his former ally who had already summoned his own armor as well._

"_You can barely stand, __**ronin**__. What makes you think you can hold your own against me?" mocked Sage._

_Truth be told, the young man knew he probably didn't stand a chance, especially if the others were nearby. His vision was already somewhat blurry. His only chance lay in the assistance of White Blaze who he hope was nearby as well. Sage kept his nodachi in its sheath._

"_Join us and become a warlord. You can be immortal. You will live forever," reasoned Sage._

_Shake of the head._

"_I do that and their blood will be on my hands. I can't allow that."_

_Sage unsheathed his nodachi and held it out in attack mode._

"_Then die where you stand, mortal."_

_The fight was the hardest he had ever had. Sage was a little weak from his armor being used to call the Inferno, but that didn't seem to slow him down in battle. The battle went south real quick. He was breathing hard and his armor was cracked in several places. Sage shook his head with an evil laugh._

"_Give it up. It's over," he said._

_The young ronin moved to launch his sure kill, but Sage was quicker and his blast of light smacked into his body hard. The armor ripped away suddenly, leaving him clad in his normal clothes, and he collapsed to his knees in an unspeakable amount of pain. Sage lifted up his sword to deal the killing blow when White Blaze, appearing out of nowhere, lunged at him and knocked him to the ground._

_He knew in order to escape he was going to need to leap over the river behind him and escape through the woods. His body felt like it was on fire, but he had to try. He climbed to his feet and ran towards the river, jumping when he met the water. He was above the middle of the river when searing pain struck up his spinal cord and he fell down into the water._

_He could barely keep his head above the water as the river pulled him down stream. Pain shot through his entire body while the water pulled him under. The cold water was starting to seep into his skin and he could feel his oxygen starting to cut off. He was too weak to keep his head above the water and was unable to return to the surface._

_Then his body started to warm up as if a heating blanket had been placed around him. He felt the heat bubble from within as well. Finally, he allowed his body and subconscious to succumb to the darkness._

/…/

Sawyer's eyes snapped open and he jerked awake. Dripping with sweat, he sat up gasping for breath and his body shaking violently. It had been quite a spell since he had experienced nightmares and so many in a single night. He was startled when he felt something wet touch the back of his hand.

Sawyer looked down to see the familiar dark grey and white canine. He raised a shaky hand (the one that had been licked) to softly scratch the dog behind the ears.

"You scared me there for a minute," Sawyer said, leaning down to lay his forehead on top of the dog's head.

"Thanks, Silver."

The Alaskan Malamute stayed absolutely still. He felt Sawyer take a shaky breath but didn't so much as let out a whine. After a few moments of dead silence, Sawyer sat up and reached over to his bed stand to slide his glasses onto his face. His alarm clock read as 3:08am.

With a groan, he threw off the covers and abandoned his bed. Silver happily followed him into the kitchen where he retrieved a glass from a cabinet and filled it with water. He took a few small sips before dumping the rest down the sink. Silver whined pitifully while placing himself near the back kitchen door that led to outside.

Sawyer chuckled. "Wanna go for a jog, boy?"

Silver barked as if answering in the affirmative. Sawyer told the canine to give him a minute. Instead of putting a shirt on, Sawyer simply changed out of his pajama pants and into a pair of black workout pants. He pulled his socks and running sneakers on, making sure to tie the laces tight. Silver was still waiting by the door but he was now standing and his tail was wagging.

The time on the microwave read as 3:32 as he disappeared out the door with Silver. Sawyer didn't even bother with warming up. He just took right off into the forest down a familiar dirt path with Silver right beside him. An Alaskan Malamute required a lot of exercise, but so did Sawyer to keep in shape so they made a good pair.

The pair jogged through the forest, by the lake, and back around to the cabin. By the time they arrived back at the kitchen door, the sun had begun to rise. As they entered the front door, they could detect sounds coming from the kitchen. Silver immediately went on the offensive and crouched low to the ground.

Sawyer slowly followed him, allowing the canine to dart around the corner into the kitchen first. He was relieved to hear the dog let out a happy, puppy-like bark. He stepped around the corner and leaned on the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest.

Silver sat straight up on his haunches, begging to no end to the person who stood frying bacon. The person was a woman of small stature. She stood at 5'2" with long, pale blonde hair and wore an oversized, loose pullover and jeans. She smiled down at Silver and shook a finger at him.

"Nooo. _No_. No bacon for you, mister," she told him.

Silver let out a series of whines while lowering his head with his paw over his muzzle. Sawyer let out a quiet chuckle as the woman caved in and gave him a warm piece of bacon off a plate. Silver took it over to his food bowl where he dropped it and started munching it down.

"You're a softie," Sawyer told her.

A pair of unique gray-blue eyes glanced up at him as the owner stood up from her crouched position. She laughed and shrugged her shoulders.

"What can I say? I'm an animal person. If you want to go cool down with a shower, I'll have breakfast done in a little bit," she replied.

"Okay," he murmured before leaving the kitchen.

Sawyer trudged back through the house to his private bathroom. He grabbed a clean pair of jeans and underwear before closing the bathroom door behind him. He turned on the shower and hopped in after stripping out of his workout clothes. Sawyer almost immediately jumped back out.

The water was horribly frigid. Through the beads of ice, Sawyer reached through the water to change the water to its opposite. Now it was scalding hot which suited him just fine. Grabbing up a bar of soap, Sawyer let out a series of groans and sighs as he washed away the stink. He washed his hair with shampoo but not conditioner since he had run out yesterday.

When he was done, Sawyer just stood under the spout for a few minutes, letting the hot water drops cascade down his body. Finally, he turned off the water and climbed out. He toweled off, got dressed and left the bathroom. On his way out, he had grabbed up his brush and was attempting to brush the knots out as he walked back to the kitchen.

When he entered the kitchen, the young woman was placing her plate in the sink and turning back around to face him. He gritted his teeth silently as his brush caught a large tangle. The blonde giggled and held out her hand. Sawyer plopped down into a seat at the kitchen table and placed the brush down beside him.

The blonde woman brought him over a plate of food and he picked up his fork to begin eating. Silver was lying under the table with his back half underneath Sawyer's chair.

"Thank you, Kalen[1]," Sawyer murmured.

"You're welcome, Sawyer," she replied.

She picked up his brush and stepped up behind him. Having been used to her doing this before, Sawyer wasn't startled or bothered when Kalen started brushing his hair. He chewed silently on a piece of bacon while she calmly pulled the tangles apart.

"I like your hair this way. It's nice and short," Kalen pointed out.

Sawyer put down his fork and wiped his mouth.

"Kalen?"

"I like the frosted highlights, too."

"Kalen?"

"And I know you have no reason to wear them, but you look very good in glasses," Kalen said, gently tapping the side of his glasses.

Sawyer's hand shot out to catch her by the wrist. She froze.

"_Kalen_," he said in a serious tone, turning his head to glance over his shoulder at her.

In his peripheral field of vision, Sawyer could see something brewing in Kalen's eyes. It wasn't a sight he was pleased to see. She looked a tad unease and he knew it was something serious.

"Tell me," he pleaded.

Kalen twisted her hand, wanting it released, and Sawyer released it immediately. She reached her hand up to his cheek to stroke it softly.

"Finish eating and I'll tell you," she promised.

"Okay."

Sawyer turned back to his breakfast and waited silently as Kalen put the brush down. He felt her hands come up to comb through his hair in a soothing manner. This was a warning sign before she began to speak.

"It's been a few years now." Snort. "The anniversary of that day came around last month. We had no reason to suspect anything was wrong. You were right. About the clouds. The storm clouds do mean something, but not what you think. So long ago, they served as a warning that Talpa was coming. This time, they've arrived a bit late."

Sawyer finished his breakfast and pushed his plate away. He felt Kalen lean forward as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and lay her head on his left shoulder.

"The seal keeping them within the Nether Realm has been broken. The _dark warlords_ have returned," she whispered.

Sawyer's body immediately tensed up, his hands curling into fists on the table. Kalen instantly tightened her hold on him and whispered soothing words in another language in his ear. He breathed deeply as he thought of the repercussions.

The dark warlords have returned. That meant trouble not only for him, but for Kalen's people and the mortals as well.

Sensing his human's distress, Silver crawled out from under the table and laid his head down in Sawyer's lap. Sawyer's hands immediately latched onto Silver's fur but he made sure to keep his grip loose.

"The seal was broken early yesterday morning. _We had no way of knowing this would happen_. We had no reason to believe the seal wouldn't hold. The Ancient One sacrificed his remaining soul force to seal the gates, allowing only us Ancients to travel between the realms through our own means."

Sawyer tensed up again at the mention of the once great man. He had helped them through everything, even using his soul force to remain on the mortal plane to guide them. A single tear slid down his cheek. He hadn't thought of the wise leader in a long time. It hurt to think of how they had all let the Ancient One down.

Even me, Sawyer thought bitterly.

"How is everyone? How big is the threat?" Sawyer whispered.

"It's safe to assume the threat is pretty severe."

Sawyer choked out a small chuckle. The blonde Ancient then emitted a sigh.

"They've resurfaced and we're not sure _where_ they actually are. None of our scouts have spotted them since Griffin discovered the broken seal. We leveled the house Mia," Sawyer tensed again "lived in when the seal was placed so there's nowhere for them to go. As for the Ancients, we're all okay. We have three locations in Toyama and the hidden city in the Nether Realm. Their likelihood of finding us isn't very high."

Sawyer processed all the information as Kalen fed it to him. It sounded as though the Ancient people were safe yet he could hear the strain in Kalen's voice.

She's still worried about discovery, Sawyer thought. As she should be.

"Do they know…" "…about you?"

Sawyer had been afraid to ask. He didn't know what the warlords knew and what they didn't. For all he knew, they could know exactly where he lived. He waited on baited breath for Kalen's answer.

"_No_. As far as the warlords know, Ryo Sanada died a hundred and seven years ago shortly before they were sealed away by the Ancient One and the Council," Kalen whispered.

Silver picked up his head when he felt Sawyer release the grip on his fur. The brunette turned his head, causing Kalen to bring her head to the side so they locked eyes.

"That's because he _is_ dead," Sawyer stated in a clear, strong voice.

That was his past. He planned to keep it good and buried.

Kalen flashed him a small smile. "I know, Sawyer."

Sawyer returned the smile. He patted Kalen's arm which was her clue to release her hold on him. He pushed his chair back from the kitchen table and stood. Kalen watched the thousands of thoughts filtering through Sawyer's fiery-colored gaze.

"I'm coming back with you," he declared.

Kalen's eyes widened in surprise.

"Sawyer, _no_. You can't."

He took a step forward to place his hands firmly on Kalen's shoulders. He momentarily ignored Silver who was dancing back and forth on his paws nervously.

"I won't let the Ancients do this alone. I won't let _you_ do this alone," Sawyer whispered.

Kalen shook her head with a solemn look on her face.

And what if they should discover who you were? Who you are, Kalen thought.

She didn't have the strength to voice her thoughts. Yet, as Sawyer drew her into a warm hug, she knew he shared her thoughts. It was only a matter of time until somebody voiced those thoughts.

END OF CHAPTER TWO?

[1] – pronounced KAY-lin

**Keep up the reviews!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Not sure why but I felt like posting another chapter. Maybe because it was actually a "good" Monday. Enjoy the chapter, my happy readers and reviewers! **

CHAPTER THREE

"I'm going to need to take care of a few things first."

Kalen nodded from her perch on Sawyer's dresser. After Sawyer had made his declaration, he had begun moving about the house packing things away. There wasn't that much to pack since he kept very few material possessions. Among his items were a couple of pictures of Yuli and Mia (which thankfully did not include the treacherous _ex_-ronins), a harmonica, a picture Yuli had drawn of him, and the Jewel of Life[1].

"I understand. Take your time. There's no need to rush," Kalen cautioned him.

Sawyer shot her an annoyed glance. He _should_ be rushing. Eight of the worst kind of people had just re-entered this world and Kalen was behaving way too calmly. Suddenly, the former ronin came to an abrupt halt in the doorway of his bathroom.

He whipped his head to the side to glance not at Kalen's face but her waist. Attached on her belt loop and hanging over the right front pocket of her jeans was what appeared to be a cell phone case. The vertically rectangular case was made of a soft cloth material and the flap was kept closed by a magnetic-like force. The case did in fact _not_ hold a cell phone, but a deck of cards.

However, Sawyer knew very well that this was no ordinary card deck full of face cards and numbers. His gaze shifted upward to the curious gaze of gray-blue.

"What did you see?" Sawyer asked.

Kalen turned her head away for a moment then turned back around to fully face Sawyer.

"There is always an infinite amount of possibilities for the future. You know this very well, Sawyer. You thought yourself doomed and dead long ago yet the future held at least one other path open for you. Sadly, the cards only tell me what the most likely possibility is at the given time," Kalen explained.

Sawyer nodded in understanding. This speech wasn't new to him. He also noticed Kalen had not answered his question.

Kalen's power as an Ancient was greater than most of her fellow Ancients. This was mostly due to Kalen being the leader of the Ancients. The Ancient One had never been granted children in his lifetime, but Kalen had been the closest thing to a daughter for him. Sawyer started thinking about all that he knew about the Ancients as he packed up things in his bathroom.

Each Ancient had a gift, some more different than the others. Kalen had explained that most didn't display their power until they were in their pre-teens. Aside from the Ancient One, Kalen and the Council were the only ones Sawyer knew of that had displayed power in childhood. The Council was a group of Ancients that kept track of everything going on in both the Mortal and Nether Realm. The Council consisted of Kalen, Griffin, Tobi, Selena, and Casper.

Griffin, Kalen's right-hand man and best friend, was an Empath. Unlike most stereotypical Empaths, Griffin had the ability to focus on an individual or group of people to 'sense' their emotions. He could also temporarily control the emotions of an individual by laying a hand on them.

Tobi was a Shifter. He could shift his appearance to that of any animal. Ironically, his twin, Casper, did not share this power. Instead, Casper was a Telepath. He was able to levitate things and read minds with an added bonus of a mental link with his twin. Selena had quite the culmination of power. She had the ability to astral project with the ability to possess someone and was a Mind Healer.

Kalen was the greatest mystery of them all. The card deck she possessed (where it had come from, he had no clue) gave her the ability to do many things. Sadly, Kalen had not confided in him all that she could do. He only knew that she could read the past, present and future with the cards; yet he knew it could do much more than that.

"Did you fall in?" Kalen called teasingly from the other room.

Sawyer shook his head to clear his thoughts. He had other things he needed to be thinking about. Like what was he was going to tell his boss at the zoo and the Leasing Manager. Sawyer left the bathroom and placed his filled box of bathroom things on the dresser next to Kalen.

"Can you send my things on ahead of us? I'm going to need to go talk to my boss and Leasing Manager," Sawyer told her.

Kalen nodded. "Of course. Do what you need to do."

"Thank you. Come, Silver."

Silver followed Sawyer out of the bedroom and to the front door where Sawyer picked up a collar from a key rack. He wrapped it securely but comfortably around Silver's neck. Then he snatched up a leash to hook to the collar.

Once outside, the two bypassed Sawyer's motorcycle in favor of running to catch the bus. If the bus driver was surprised to see Silver jump on the bus with Sawyer, he didn't show it. Aside from the driver, there was only one other person on the bus and this was an elderly woman snoozing at the very back. Silver jumped up onto a seat and laid down while Sawyer turned towards the bus driver.

"Disculpe. ¿Se puede ir directamente al zoológico?" Sawyer asked. [2]

The bus driver wasn't surprised Sawyer sounded so fluent in his [the driver's] native language. He had driven the bus on this route many times before and the young man had always greeted him politely.

"Sí. No problema," replied the bus driver.

"Gracias."

Sawyer walked and sat down next to Silver. He pulled out his cell phone and immediately found the zoo in his contacts. He pressed Call and started shaking his leg up and down in nervousness as he waited.

Click. "_Hello?_"

"Hi, this is Sawyer. Is Harrison around?"

"_I just saw him getting a drink from the break room. I think he's wrapping up his work for the day._"

Sawyer had been afraid of that. It was close to the end of the work day and Harrison was bound to be going home soon.

"Tell him not to leave until I get there. I need to speak to him and it **can't** wait until tomorrow," Sawyer said, making sure to put extra emphasis on the word.

"_What was the name again?_"

"Sawyer. Sawyer Thompson."

"_Okay. I'll let him know._"

"I appreciate it. Thanks."

After hanging up, Sawyer pocketed his phone. He leaned back in his seat while bringing a hand down to pet Silver. It didn't take long for them to arrive at the zoo. He thanked the bus driver again before hopping off the bus with Silver's leash in hand.

Sawyer walked through the guest services building just left to the ticket booths and didn't even bother flashing his ID badge at the secretary. He walked down a long hallway to the last office on the right. The door was open but he knocked on it anyway to gain the attention of the office's resident.

The resident was a middle-aged man with long, graying hair tied back in a ponytail. He wore a royal blue collared t-shirt with a pen attached to his shirt pocket. He stood up from his desk when he spotted the pair in the doorway.

"Sawyer, please take a seat. The secretary told me you were coming," Harrison said as he walked around his desk to shake hands with him and close his office door.

"Thank you," Sawyer replied, taking a seat.

Harrison turned around and patted him on the shoulder as an additional greeting before turning his attention to Silver.

"Silver! How wonderful to see you again. Sawyer really should bring you by more often," Harrison said, holding out his hand.

The dog reached his paw up and allowed the man to shake his paw up and down. After dropping the paw, Harrison moved around the two to return to his seat.

"I'm sorry I didn't just call, but I felt I should talk to you in person," Sawyer apologized.

Harrison frowned. In the five years he had known Sawyer, starting with the initial interview for employment, he had never heard the young man exude such a serious tone in his voice. When he had first met him, he had been cheery but sad at times. So he knew that something was up.

"Is everything okay, Sawyer?" Harrison asked.

He wasn't surprised or pleased when Sawyer quietly shook his head.

"No, sir. Everything is not okay. A….close friend of the…uh…family is having a lot of serious trouble right now. I need to be with her right now," Sawyer explained, shifting his gaze from his supervisor to the office window.

Harrison could see the strain in the young man's face. He noticed the way his hands tightened into fists on his lap and how the dog leaned on his owner as if offering comfort. Harrison rubbed his chin in thought while leaning back in his chair. After a noticeable moment of silence, he leaned forward with his elbows on his desk. This drew Sawyer's attention back to him.

"How long?" Harrison asked.

Sawyer shrugged. "I don't know. It may be a while. A year? Maybe longer."

Harrison sucked in a breath then let it out. That wasn't what he had been expecting.

"That's a mighty shame, Sawyer. Dr. Saunders is retiring next week and we were going to be looking for a new Director for the Outreach Program." Sawyer's eyebrows knit together in confusion. "I was going to recommend you to the Board for re-assignment as the Director."

Sawyer's eyes widened. The Outreach Program at the zoo was impressive and he had worked with the program quite often. He had never thought of getting a promotion but here Harrison was offering it to him. He shook his head. He knew he couldn't accept it.

"Take all the time you need. The job is yours when you come back," Harrison told him.

Sawyer's mouth threatened to drop open. He was speechless. Had Harrison just ensured him a job when (or if) he came back? He was brought out of his shock by a hand clamping gently down on his shoulder. Sawyer glanced up to see Harrison now standing beside him.

"You are a great man and have been a wonderful addition to the zoo. We couldn't ask for anyone better. We'll find someone who will work with the understanding that the job is yours for when you return," Harrison told him in a voice that left no argument.

"T-Thank y-y-you," Sawyer managed to choke out.

He stood up and held out a hand to his supervisor. He froze up when the man took his hand and pulled him into a tight, one-armed hug.

[Don't touch me, don't touch me, don't touch me, _do __**not**__ touch me_.]

Before the ronin betrayal, Sawyer had endured pats on the back, playful wrestling, high fives, and short one-armed hugs from his fellow warriors. After the betrayal, he only ever accepted a handshake and a pat on the arm, shoulder or back. He allowed Kalen and _only_ Kalen to embrace him.

Before he had the moment to even think of hyperventilating, Sawyer was released. Harrison wished him good luck before showing him out. Sawyer patted Silver on the head before lightly commanding him to follow as they left the zoo. It didn't take long for the bus to return. Luckily, the same bus driver was driving and seemed to sense how the young man wanted to go straight to home.

Seeing as no one else was on board, the bus driver changed the message on the bus to read out loud to everyone that the bus was out of order.

"Estás bien[3]?" the bus driver asked, glancing up at the mirror to look at Sawyer and Silver.

"Yo estoy…cansado[4]," Sawyer answered.

The bus driver could see the weariness in Sawyer's face and noticed how his body was hunched over in his seat.

"Tú necesitas descanar entonces[5]."

Sawyer smiled weakly and nodded in agreement. Closing his eyes, Sawyer leaned his body back with his head against the seat and rested. Silver laid his head down between his paws on the bus floor. Upon arriving back to the apartment complex, Sawyer was surprised once again. The Property Manager was a generous older woman who told Sawyer she would keep the apartment cabin reserved for him and have someone keep up with its cleaning.

Once again, Sawyer found himself swept into a hug, but this time he didn't tense up. He knew this woman, had watched her now seven year old daughter many times, and felt a little comfortable having a woman hug him. He could handle a hug from her.

After saying his final goodbyes, the two returned to the cottage apartment where Kalen was sitting on the front step. Sawyer reached his hand out and pulled her to her feet. Kalen smiled at him while keeping her hand in his.

"Are you sure you're ready for this? I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to stay here. You know none of my people would reveal your presence to them," Kalen said.

Sawyer brought his other hand up to Kalen's cheek. He leaned in close to make sure he had Kalen's full attention.

"I am not going to abandon you and the other Ancients. That goes against everything I believe in. I will be there every step of the way until the threat is gone," Sawyer promised in a strong, steady voice.

Kalen nodded quietly. She knew there was no arguing with Sawyer, but she had to ask. Silver sat down beside both of them and leaned head on Kalen. She reached down to pat him gently on the muzzle.

"Then let's go."

/…Unknown location in Toyama…/

Rumbling echoed through the storm clouds while lightning struck the ground. Two figures stood out under it, unafraid of the possible downpour that was going to ensue. One figure, the shorter of the two, breathed in the fresh air before letting out a chuckle.

"It feels so good to be back."

The taller of the two let out a snort.

"Oh, what's a hundred and seven years of banishment?"

The shorter figure flashed him a smirk.

"Hell," he answered, plain and simple.

"And the immortality and training with our former adversaries?"

"The burning pits of Hell."

The taller figure threw his head back and let out a loud, evil laugh. When he was done, he clapped his companion on the back.

"You haven't lost your sense of humor in all this time." Smirk. "So what have you been thinking about since we returned, old friend?"

"The Ancients."

A sneer before another chuckle. "We have _all_ been thinking of _them_."

"I'm thinking of one in particular."

The taller figure raised an eyebrow. He, like the others, knew very well which Ancient he thought about.

"By now, they will have found the broken seal. I wonder how much of a panic they're in," the smaller figure added.

The two shared a laugh as lightning flashed through the sky overhead.

END OF CHAPTER THREE

[1] – Note: This plays a significant role in the story. Look out for the explanation later down the road.

[2] – Google Translation: "Excuse me. Can you drive straight to the zoo?"

[3] – Google Translation: "You okay?"

[4] – Google Translation: "I am…tired."

[5] – Google Translation: "You need rest then."


	4. Chapter 4

Dead Man's Hand

CHAPTER FOUR

"We'll be there soon."

Sawyer nodded his head silently. Kalen, Sawyer, and Silver were walking down a long pathway between two rows of cherry blossom trees. Instead of their usual light pink color, the blossoms were a bright mixture of red, orange, and yellow. It reminded Sawyer strongly of flames; it was a comforting feeling to the man who has once bore the Wildfire armor.

Sawyer had watched in awe as Kalen had opened a small, human-sized door out of water from the lake. They had then used that door to enter the Nether Realm. Silver's leash and collar were now tucked away in the messenger bag Sawyer was carrying on him. Silver would jog ahead of them then turn around to run back, circle around the duo, and jog ahead again.

Sawyer glanced up at the sky. It was littered with a sea of sparkling stars and two bright circles of light. He knew there were probably many differences between the two realms, but he wasn't quite sure what those differences were. So he decided to ask Kalen.

"Well, there are actually a few similarities between the Mortal Realm and the Nether Realm. There are people and animals, we live in buildings, and so on. Unless we bring our brand of nether 'magic' into the Mortal Realm, it typically stays here. Not all Nether Realm people have special abilities like the Ancients. There are many nations here in the Nether Realm, most of which stay out of the war between the Warlords and Ancients."

Sawyer took a moment to take this in as Kalen paused in her speech. Then Kalen continued.

"In order to find the Hidden City of the Ancients or the Warlords domain, you have to be a resident there, be escorted by a resident, or possess an item that has been modified to allow you entrance. Everywhere else is accessible at all times."

"How do the Nether realm Residents feel about the Warlords? And the Ancients?" Sawyer interrupted.

Kalen took in a deep breath as she watched Silver off in the distance. The canine jumped up barking at a tree where some birds were sitting.

"Most people fear the power of the armors, but there are one or two nations that honor that power. The Ancients are welcome most anywhere. Mainly because all we want is peace within the realm and the Mortal Realm left as it is. We know we are welcome when a resident speaks a code phrase to us. Only those who will welcome us know the phrase."

Thinking on that, Sawyer whistled low and long for Silver. The canine had run much further ahead of them than Sawyer was comfortable with. The Alaskan Malamute stopped at the end of the trees and sat down where he waited obediently.

"What is the phrase?"

Kalen stopped next to Silver and turned towards Sawyer who had also stopped.

"Be led in light."

Sawyer frowned. Could it really be that simple a phrase? Kalen must have read his mind because she giggled and patted him on the arm gently.

"We have a few fake-out phrases that draw out those who are hoping to hold an Ancient hostage," Kalen added.

Kalen held out her arm to her side and in front of where they were.

"Welcome to the Hidden City, Sawyer."

Whatever Sawyer had been expecting it wasn't this. Before him stood an old, waterless fountain in the center of a courtyard with a small wall and archway behind it. Beyond the archway there was a city of old, abandoned buildings with another fountain all the way at the end of the roadway. Kalen laughed playfully at the look on his face.

"Remember, Saw. We call it the Hidden City for a reason," Kalen reassured him.

They stopped under the archway when Kalen took his hand in hers, interlocking their fingers. She placed a hand on top of Silver's head and gripped his ear firmly. Kalen stepped forward with both of them from under the archway.

Suddenly, the image of the abandoned city flickered and it became a very much alive city. The buildings were full of color, the fountains were flowing with clear water, people were talking on the street and children were running around playing. Seeing the children, Silver broke out of Kalen's grip and ran off to play while barking happily.

Kalen chuckled as she gently pulled Sawyer along to walk with her. Sawyer was at awe that such a significant change could happen just by Kalen's touch upon entering the city. Many people standing outside waved hello to the two of them as they walked by. A small group of children of various ages chased Silver around while laughing and cheering.

As they reached the fountain at the end of the street, they were joined by a small group of adults, four guys and a woman. Although he only recognized one of the guys, Sawyer knew these fellow adults (with the exception of one of the guys) were the very ones who made up the Ancient Council.

One guy stepped forward to greet them. He had soft chocolate brown eyes and dirty blonde hair. He wore half-finger nylon gloves, one black and the other white, over his hands.

"Welcome back, Kalen," he said, placing a soft kiss on top of her head.

Then he turned to nod his head to Sawyer respectfully.

"Good to see you again, Sawyer. I trust you are well," spoke the man in a surprisingly soft voice.

Sawyer knew to be careful when mentioning anything of how he was feeling emotionally when near this particular Ancient.

"I'm…conflicted, Griffin," Sawyer replied, speaking honestly.

Griffin nodded slowly. Kalen let go of Sawyer's hand and took a small step away. Griffin held one of his gloved hands (the white one) palm up in invitation to Sawyer. With only a small bit of hesitation, Sawyer placed his hand in Griffin's. The gloved hand gripped his hand firmly, but not too tightly.

He watched as Griffin's gaze seemed to drift off. His eyes slowly shifted from their chocolate brown to a dark hazel to orange and then back to their normal brown. Griffin smiled as he murmured something in the native Ancient tongue. Finally, Griffin released his hand and Sawyer took a small step back.

"You are _very_ conflicted, Sawyer. But again, _you_, of all people, have a right to be. I _am_ sorry this has happened," Griffin said.

"T-Thank you," Sawyer murmured.

Griffin smiled before stepping aside and waving to the group.

"I believe some introductions are in order. As you have guessed, these are the members of the Council. These two are our infamous twins of terror, Casper and Tobi."

The two males stepped forward to shake hands with him; at the same time. At first, he wasn't sure how to tell the two boys apart. They had dark, charcoal gray hair with dark blue eyes.

"I'm Tobi."

[I'm Casper.]

Sawyer nearly jerked out of both their grasps when he heard the voice speak inside his head. Tobi, the one who had spoken out loud, released his hand, but Casper still held his right hand.

[Forgive me? It was not my intention to scare you. This is how I communicate.]

"I-I'm sorry?" asked a very confused Sawyer.

Tobi clapped a hand on his twin's shoulder.

"Sorry about that, mate. Me twin Casper here was born mute. He's a Telepath so by touch he can speak to you up heere." Tobi tapped the side of his head. "When we was growin' up, I was me brother's voice. See, we have a mind link which allows him to speak to me mind without needin' to touch me."

Sawyer was secretly impressed. It had to have been tough for Casper growing up to have to rely on his twin so much.

[Do not worry about me. The other Ancients have grown accustomed to my inabilities and abilities. It is good to finally meet you.]

Sawyer shook his hand firmly and agreed in the affirmative. The twins stepped back and the only other female of the group appeared in front of him. Sawyer bowed his head to her and she giggled.

"Hello, Sawyer. I'm Selena."

That was all she said before walking back over to stand between the twins. The last guy of the group stepped up to stand next to Griffin who introduced him as Kai.

"I thought the Council only had five members," Sawyer said.

"There was. Kai here is the youngest of our group. He's only just joined the Council this year," Griffin explained.

Kai was about to speak when a group of children came running over with Silver. One little girl clamped onto Sawyer's hand and tugged on it playfully until he knelt down beside her.

"Vine a jugar amb nosaltres, amic de Kalen[1]!" she said happily.

The other kids cheered in agreement. Sawyer glanced up at Kalen with an uneasy look. Kalen shook her head with a smile. She clapped her hands to gain the attention of all the children who immediately quieted down.

"Children, this is our friend Sawyer. He doesn't speak our language so English, please," Kalen encouraged them.

All the children nodded their heads in agreement. The little girl leaning on Sawyer prodded him in the shoulder until he turned back around to look at her.

"Come play with us!" she exclaimed, repeating her statement from before.

Sawyer chuckled. He had always had a soft spot for children. The little girl pulled on his hand until he stood and the children all surrounded him pulling him out away from the group. He looked over his shoulder at Kalen who nodded.

"Go have fun, my friend. The Council has to meet and I'm afraid we'll be a while," Kalen apologized.

"Okay."

After that, Sawyer allowed the children to pull him along. He whistled for Silver who licked Kalen's hand before running off. Kalen turned towards her fellow Council members and spoke softly to them.

"Entrem. Tenim molt a discutir [2]," Kalen said.

The group nodded their heads in agreement. They moved as one around the fountain and entered the building behind them. The building had several winding halls and many rooms. They walked to the very back where a variety of chairs were set up in a circle. Drawn into the floor in the center of the circle was a series of symbols. There was a smaller circle in the center that had no symbol on it.

Each Council member sat down in their respective chair while Kalen stepped up to stand in the very center of the smaller circle.

"Welcome, my amics and família [friends and family]. I wish we were meeting under better circumstances," Kalen said with a sad expression on her face.

Murmurs of agreement sounded from the group.

"Our worst fears have come to life. _The seal_ has been _broken_ and the Dark Warlords have returned to the Mortal Realm."

Kalen's words echoed through the room, adding strength to their meaning. From Kalen's left, Griffin leaned forward in his seat. Instantly, Kalen and the rest of the Council turned towards him, giving him their full attention. He waited a moment before speaking.

"I was…pleasantly surprised that Sawyer returned with you. We can never repay him for what he did for us. And the world. And yet he still feels as though this is where he needs to be," Griffin said.

Across from Griffin (on Kalen's right), Kai was balancing a small ball of water from one hand to the other while respectfully keeping his gaze on the elder Ancient. Like the others, he looked to be in his young twenties, but he was actually in his late thirties. He sat up abruptly with the ball of water quietly sloshing back onto the ground behind him. Kalen's head snapped back around to him.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I apologize to ya, Kalen, and to da rest of da Council, but I don' understand," Kai replied.

Kalen wasn't the only one who frowned.

"What confuses you, young Kai?" Griffin questioned.

Kai stood with a short bow to Kalen who nodded her head back to him.

"Well, I know _how_ the seal was put into place and _how_ the warlords were banished. I'm talkin' about the mortal. Sawyer? This was my first time meetin' him. What has he done fer us?"

The question stunned them all. Surely, someone amongst their people had told him about Sawyer?! However, when Griffin asked him about this, Kai answered in the negative.

"Maleït," Kalan hissed under her breath.

Kai jumped slightly. It wasn't every day you heard one of the Council members, particularly Griffin or Kalen, curse in the native tongue. Kalen drew in a deep breath and let it out. She motioned for Kai to take a seat as she reached into her pouch pocket where her cards sat. She withdrew the card on the very top.

Griffin and the twins could see the card while Kalen held it out to her side between two fingers with it facing behind her. Twisting her fingers and wrist, she then turned it around to face Kai and Selena.

The side that had been facing them was a dark blue-purple with a large, thin crescent moon and three tiny stars around it. On the face-up side was a cloaked figure riding a large, menacing looking horse[3] and carrying a scythe. Noting the serious look on Kalen's face, Kai leaned back against his seat and left the water on the ground behind him.

"This is Sawyer's past. Do you know what it is?" Kalen asked.

Kai had his suspicions, but he had only ever seen a few cards in the leader's deck. He silently shook his head. Kalen brought her hand down yet the card remained floating in the air. The blonde Ancient clasped her hands together behind her.

"This is the Death card. More precisely, the Messenger of Death. It is Sawyer's past and," Kalen took in a staggering, deep breath "...his curse. Let us tell you about it."

/.../

"Phew!"

Sawyer plopped down at the base of a tree. The children had pulled him kicking a soccer ball around. They had been going at it for an hour now. The little girl from earlier, an angel by the name of Gabriella, had quite the powerful kick.

He was watching the children kick the ball around when Griffin suddenly appeared at his side. The Ancient had a small frown on his face. Sawyer thought that probably didn't bode well for him.

"Will you come with me, Sawyer? The Council must meet with you," Griffin told him.

Sawyer climbed to his feet, dusting off his clothes with quick swipes of his hands. He turned so he could fully face the older male.

"Is something wrong?" Sawyer asked.

Griffin smiled before placing a hand (the black gloved) on his shoulder. Suddenly, Sawyer felt a large wave of peace wash over him. Had it not been for Griffin's strong, steady hand on his shoulder, Sawyer felt as though he would have collapsed.

"Come inside with me, my friend. We have much we need to talk about," Griffin explained.

Griffin nodded his head towards the children. "Silver, too."

Sawyer let out a high, short whistle. Silver scrambled up to his feet and darted away from the children to slide to a stop next to Sawyer. The children pouted at the loss of the canine, but returned to playing their game.

Sawyer followed Griffin inside with his canine companion walking beside him. It didn't take long for them to reach the Council's meeting room. Griffin returned to his seat while Sawyer and Silver stood in between Griffin and the twins. Kalen turned around from her conversation with Kai and smiled.

"Thank you for coming to meet with us, Sawyer," Kalen said, turning back to finish her short conversation with Kai.

"La pau sigui amb el Consell de la Ancients [4]."

Kalen looked just as perplexed as the rest of the Council when she whipped around. Sawyer looked confused. Had he said something wrong? Griffin picked up on his confusion and spoke up.

"I do not believe our young ally realizes what he just said," Griffin pointed out.

"What? Did I say something wrong?" Sawyer asked, worried he had said something offensive without realizing it.

Selena shook her head. "No, Sawyer. You said 'Peace be to the Council of the Ancients.' It is the most respectful greeting anyone can give us."

Sawyer squinted one of his eyes and raised his opposite eyebrow up. So what was the big deal?

"Ya said it in _our_ native tongue," Kai said, accusingly.

Sawyer's face grew just as confused as the others, especially when Selena quietly added that he had sounded quite fluent. The Council members murmured quietly to each other, causing a tad bit of confusion, until Kalen let out a short, high-pitched whistle. Everyone immediately silenced and focused on her.

"We'll worry about the how later. For now, we need to make sure that we are all on the same page. Come sit, Sawyer."

Sawyer sat down on an empty chair next to Kalen's. She sat down as well. Silver laid down next to Sawyer's chair and closed his eyes. Selena explained how they had just finished telling Kai of his past.

"I'm sorry dat happened to ya," Kai blurted out.

Sawyer smiled awkwardly and murmured a quiet thank you. They quickly fell down into their serious conversation.

"There are a few things we need you to know before you join us back out in the Mortal Realm in Toyama. Otherwise, we could put the lives of everyone, Ancient and mortal, in real danger. Okay?" Kalen asked.

Sawyer nodded silently in understanding. Across from Sawyer and Kalen, Tobi was the first to speak.

"What do you know of the banishment of the warlords and the seal?" Tobi questioned.

Sawyer took the time to think on that question. It had been so long ago that this had been brought up into conversation.

"The Ancient One sealed away the…_warlords_ and closed the link between the realms. This caused a banishment of them to the Nether Realm. He used up his remaining spirit force to create the seal," Sawyer answered.

Tobi smiled. He shrugged his shoulders and held his hands palm up to the ceiling.

"Yes and no. The Ancient One, with the assistance of the Council, was able to banish the warlords to the Nether Realm and create the seal. You are right that he is no longer with us. He did use his remaining spirit force to save the mortals," Tobi said, nodding his head as he finished.

Suddenly, the lines carved into the ground in the middle of their circle began glowing. Streaks of colored light came up into the air and began to form words.

**It is vital…you know…what the warlords know.**

The words came in intervals one after another as if it were someone speaking. Sawyer glanced under the text over at the twins. Tobi had a hand on his brother's arm while Casper had his head down and eyes closed. Somehow the connection was allowing for Casper to form his words into the air before them.

"What do they know?" Sawyer inquired.

**They know less…than you do.**

Sawyer looked sideways at Kalen. She had her head up but was glancing off to the side with her gaze between Selena and Kai.

This has something to do with Kalen, Sawyer thought.

Sawyer returned his gaze to the bright orange words forming in the air.

**They know about the Council…but they do NOT know…Kalen is our leader.**

Sawyer's head snapped to the side as did Silver who wasn't quite sure what was going on. Kalen slowly turned her head to lock eyes with him. She nodded.

"Wha-? H-H-How?" Sawyer stuttered.

Kalen sucked in a deep breath before releasing it.

"Although I am the leader, the Council works as a whole. We cornered the warlords together as that whole. The original warlords have known me for a while but that was before the Ancient One chose me as his apprentice. I had only just taken over a few months prior to the betrayal," Kalen explained.

Griffin immediately chimed in before Sawyer could speak.

"Kalen's identity as our leader _must_ be kept a secret. She is already a major target for the warlords, but if her status was revealed they would focus _completely_ on her. We can't risk that," Griffin added.

"I understand," Sawyer said.

"What about Sawyer? I mean, I know it's been over a hundred years but won' his former friends be able ta recognize him."

Sawyer stiffened. Kai had a good point. He looked over at Kalen who drew out a card from her deck. The face of the card was unique looking. A small child stood in the center of a room full of mirrors. In four different mirrors was a different reflection of the child. They showed him as a baby, a teenager, an adult, and an elderly man.

"Let's take a look," Kalen suggested.

She turned her arm horizontally and threw the card out in front of her. Sawyer watched in amazement as the card flew out horizontally before swinging upwards to float vertically in mid-air. The card slowly turned around to face him and Kalen.

"Obert [5]."

The spoken word caused the card face to change to clear and glow. Two thin lines of light spun out from the card and FLASH! In place of where the card had been were two standing images. Sawyer was surprised to see an image of his past self (Ryo) and his current self (Sawyer).

Everyone stood up and closed the circle by stepping closer. There were noticeable differences between the two images. Ryo had the youthful appearance of age sixteen with his long, black hair and bright blue eyes. His skin was tan and his smile playful. He wore a red sweater with a white collar, blue jeans, and sneakers.

Sawyer stood a few inches taller with the older appearance of his twenty-three year old self. He was a somewhat paler shade of color with frosted highlights naturally woven into his short, raven-colored hair. His eyes were a shocking deep shade of autumn orange and hidden behind small, rounded-off rectangular shaped lenses. His mirror image wore the same clothes as him; a plain light gray shirt with a deep red, unzipped hoodie and dark gray military jacket, blue jeans, and sneakers [6].

The group agreed as a whole that Sawyer was highly unlikely to be recognized as Ryo. Griffin had also pointed out that Sawyer's voice was a smidge deeper than it used to be. Kalen summoned the image back to her card and returned the card to her deck. She placed a hand on Sawyer's arm. She waited until she had his gaze on her to speak.

"It's important you know how we were able to banish the warlords and place the seal over their connection between the realms."

Kalen noticed how weary Sawyer looked. He murmured that he was tired. Kalen knew the travel between the realms could be exhausting for someone who wasn't used to it. Yet she insisted.

"When this story is over, you can rest. Time is of the essence right now."

Sawyer let out a big sigh.

"Okay."

/…/

_The ronins had betrayed the very mortals they had sworn to protect. Since the 'death' of their leader, several incidences had occurred. Lightning strikes had caused large fires, earthquakes caused deep holes in the earth, and a tsunami of great proportions had doused the United States. Deaths had started occurring everywhere in the world._

_Despite the turmoil, the city of Toyama tried to move on. They held their annual Family Blossom Festival which consisted of a large gathering of fun booths, games and such. Having given the mortals a small break, one of the traitorous warriors chose to separate from the rest and walk amongst the mortals._

_He walked aimlessly past a mentalist who had hypnotized a group of people and a separate group of children singing a song. His guard was down so he was unaware of several sets of eyes with their gaze on him. The warrior stopped a few feet short from a small table where a young woman was doing something with cards._

_She had short blonde hair and wore a hat that covered her face as she kept her head lowered. There was an elderly man sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the table. She had a card deck out on the table and appeared to be doing a tarot reading. He glanced around but in reality he was eavesdropping on the reading._

"…_and your last card is the Judgment card."_

"_Is that a bad thing?" the man asked with a chuckle._

_The young woman shook her head._

"_Many mistake it for such. Yet the Judgment card means the reaping of awards. You shall be rewarded very soon for a job well done," she told him._

_The elderly man stood up to shake hands with her while she stayed seated and thanked her with a quiet word. He moved on past the young woman as she brought her cards together into the full deck._

"_Care for a reading, traveler?" came the voice of the woman from under her hat._

_The warrior stepped closer with a sly smile on his face. He leaned down onto the table and spoke._

"_Perhaps if I saw your beautiful face I might consider," he said._

_She brought her head up to reveal a sparkling pair of gray-blue eyes. He slowly lowered himself down into a seat as he watched her artfully shuffle the deck. When she was done, she placed the deck down in front of her._

"_What would you like your reading on?" she asked._

_The warrior tapped a finger on his chin with a small smile before shrugging._

"_Surprise me."_

_She smiled._

"_Very well."_

_The woman picked up the deck again and evenly separated the cards into five groups. She told him to select a deck. The warrior thought on it for a moment before selecting the center deck. She placed the four parts back into a whole and set it aside. Starting with the card on the top of the chosen deck, the woman placed three cards face-down in a triangle formation._

"_Your first card…" she turned over the card on the left. "…is the Strength card. It tells me you have a lot of strength, inner and physical."_

_He listened with rapt attention and feigned interest. The next card showed the Hanged Man. He chuckled._

"_Now what can a card entitled the Hanged Man tell you about little ol' __**me**__?" he asked curiously._

_Her smile remained constant as she explained its meaning._

"_People often mistake this card's meaning. The Hanged Man holds many mysteries, but they cannot be learned by searching for the lessons. You must trust within. This card tells me you put a lot of trust from within over many struggles and mysteries in your life."_

_Another chuckle from him as the woman reached out to flip the third and final card. She was surprised when his hand shot out to stop her. She looked up with a quizzical look on her face._

"_What's your name?" he asked._

"_My friends call me Kay," she answered._

_He smiled. Good. He hadn't seen through her lie._

"_Have lunch with me."_

/…/

Sawyer stared in horror at Kalen. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. She had enticed one of the ex-ronins by engaging him in conversation and he had asked her out to lunch.

"Please God tell me it wasn't Sage," Sawyer murmured.

Kalen shook her head. "No. It wasn't _him_."

/…/

_Kalen finished gargling the saltwater and spat it out on the ground. Griffin chuckled from where he was perched on a low tree branch. Kalen had been dating the ex-ronin-turned-warlord for a few weeks now._

"_Is everything ready?" Kalen asked, tossing him up the water bottle._

"_Yes. Selena and Casper took care of the ruins. The Ancient One has finished pulling all of his spirit force into the Staff." He paused. "How are you?"_

_Kalen smiled weakly. The ex-ronin had done normal activities such as late-night walks and dinner dates. He was a good kisser, but a tad too possessive for Kalen. For instance, he had a surprisingly assertive personality with holding her hand tightly and telling more than asking her out._

"_I'm fine. We knew when we started this plan that things may get rough. I'll be lucky if I survive us finishing the seal and banishing the warlords," Kalen said._

"_You will. The Ancient One is counting on you to lead us when he's gone."_

"_I know."_

_Sigh._

"_You know what the worst part about…'seeing' him is?"_

"_No. What?"_

"_I think he wants me to meet the 'family.'"_

_Griffin fell out of the tree laughing while Kalen glared at him._

_/…/_

"_So when do we get to meet his 'little treasure'?"_

_Kento chuckled as he walked beside Dais. The two of them were downtown scouting out what some of their recent destruction had done._

"_Hell if I know, man! Cye's been hiding her away all to himself. I'm surprised with seven of us that none of us have spotted him with her," Kento replied._

_Dais shook his head. It was a wonder how none of them had seen the mystery girl yet. However, that thought came to a screeching halt when he glanced upwards. He stopped dead and stared in disbelief. Kento followed his gaze._

_Cye was standing up on the bridge above holding a woman close in his arms. He was pointing up at something to which she was smiling over her shoulder at him._

"_Cye was right. She does look like a gem," Kento said with a smirk._

_Kento was shocked when his companion swore quite colorfully. He turned his head towards him confused._

"_What? What's wrong about Cye dating Kay?" Kento asked._

_Dais let out a loud snort. "__**Kay**__ isn't just a Kay. Kay is short for __**Kalen.**__"_

_Kento stared at him confused._

"_You know her?"_

_Dais glared up where the two of them had just been standing. They had moved on from their spot now and couldn't be seen._

"_Unfortunately, __**we**__ do. Remember us telling you four about the group of Ancients?"_

"_Yeah. What about 'em?"_

"_She's one of them."_

/…/

"He told the others?"

Griffin piped up in response instead of Kalen.

"Of course. I kept watch nearby and observed them. He told the others. Cye was a little hard to convince but the original warlords told him facts about Kalen that only they would know after having known her longer than him."

"What happened next?"

/…/

_A gorgeous white snow leopard with pale, practically unseeable black spots and bright gray-blue eyes tore through the forest at top speed. The snow leopard leapt over a log and landed on the other side. A few seconds later, a pack of wolves came tearing over and under the log after the leopard. The group consisted of eight wolves with various colors ranging in shades of gray and black._

_Normally, wolves wouldn't be able to keep up with a tiger or snow leopard, but their added power allowed them to keep up just behind the slightly bigger beast. The snow leopard darted through the trees, but made sure not to lose them. One of the wolves communicated to the others about an open meadow nearby._

_Three of the wolves sprinted forward and over to the snow leopard's left. They forced her to turn and run towards the meadow. Little did they know that's exactly what the snow leopard had been anticipating. One of the wolves snapped at her long yet oddly thin tail, making her leap over a small stream._

_The snow leopard entered the meadow first and bolted for the center before slowing to a stop. She turned around to face the wolves as they slowly emerged from the woods. With a breeze of cherry blossom petals, the leopard shifted form from beast to human. Kalen stood poised with a card in her hand._

_One wolf, a dark gray with fierce blue eyes, growled and lunged at her. When he was about a foot away, he was thrown backwards by an unforeseen force. He jumped up from the ground with a growl._

"_You went right where I needed you to," Kalen said._

_Before the wolves could even transform to their human forms, the spirit of the Ancient One appeared in the center of them. Each of the Council members[7] stood at the outer edges of the circle. Griffin was channeling his Empathetic abilities with the help of Casper and Tobi (who was currently a wolf, too). With the added help, Griffin was able to keep the warlords extremely calm while the Ancient One chanted in their native tongue._

_Selena was holding the seal closed along with Kalen. Kalen's card was clear and blank but when it caught the light just right it revealed a light outline copy of the circle of ruins drawn into the grass. A sea of blue light shot up on the outer circle separating the Council from the warlords and spirit of the Ancient One._

_Each wolf changed into a ball of light matching the color of their armors. They shot up into the sky and through an open dynasty gate. The Ancient One's spirit approached Kalen until he was standing just between her and the blue light._

"_Take care, child. You will be a wonderful leader. I am very proud of you, my apprentice," he said._

_Tears sprung to Kalen's eyes, but they refused to fall._

"_I'm so sorry. None of us could have foreseen this coming," Kalen whispered._

_The saddened spirit nodded his head._

"_I know. You know what must be done now, Kalen. Heal the minds and search for Ryo," the Ancient One told her._

_Kalen shook her head while wiping the tears away. She could see the light and the spirit beginning to fade._

"_Do you really think he could have survived?" she asked._

"_I do not know, my apprentice. It is beyond my abilities now to detect his life force. His body was not found so you must search for him. If he has passed on to the next world, Ryo of the Wildfire deserves a proper burial," the Ancient One answered._

_Kalen nodded. "It's the least we can do. We will search for him, Ancient One, and we __**will**__ find him."_

_The Ancient One whispered a prayer in their native tongue before he and the light faded completely away. It took Kalen several minutes to blink the tears away and compose herself. The other members of the Council walked over to stand with her._

"_What do we do now?" Tobi asked._

"_We still have a lot of work to do. They left us a big mess to clean up," Kalen answered._

/…/

Sawyer brought a fist up to his forehead to stem away the migraine that was roaring to the forefront now. He felt another hand on his shoulder and immediately felt a calming wave wash over him that almost made him faint.

"I think it time you get some rest, Sawyer. It has been a long day for you and for us as well," Griffin told him.

Silver let out an even bigger sigh than Sawyer. Rest sounded really good right about now.

END OF CHAPTER FOUR

[1] – I'm going to make the Ancient language as Catalan. Why? Not really sure. The translation works and it looks cool. And it's on Google Translate.

[2] – "Let us go inside. We have much to discuss." (More or less, that's what I typed in; this is the result.)

[3] – If you've ever seen Disney's "Hunchback of Notre Dame," the horse I'm envisioning is Frollo's horse. It looks frightening.

[4] – "Peace be to the Council of the Ancients."

[5] – "Open."

[6] – I am a Big Bang Theory fan and I love Leonard's outfit. This is what I'm picturing Sawyer wearing but in different colors from what he, Leonard, wears.

[7] – At this time, the Council only exists of Kalen, Griffin, Tobi, Casper, and Selena.

**Author's Note: Sorry if this chapter seemed really wordy, but I wanted to get all the details in. This was one of my longest chapters, too. Over 6,000 words! **


	5. Chapter 5

Tigergirl: Hello? Where have all my readers and reviewers gone? Summer ended and everyone up and disappeared on me.

Cale: *smirk* Cry me a river.

Tigergirl: *glare* I'll do much worse than that if you don't get up out of my face!

Cale: *walks away, grumbling*

Tigergirl: *rolls her eyes* See what happens when my reader and reviewer numbers go down. My characters get out of hand and backtalk to me. So please _**please**_ review!

CHAPTER FIVE

"They've been quiet."

"Is there any sign of them?"

Shake of the head. "No."

"Well, what did you expect? _Them_ to be openly searching for _us_?"

Smack. "Smart ass."

"What? Were you expecting flowers and applause?"

Snort. "Hell no. It just surprises me we haven't seen hide nor hair of them. It's been a few days now."

The other made a sound of agreement as he stood up.

"They'll come looking. It's only a matter of time. The longer _we_ stay quiet, the more anxious they'll get."

"Too true, brother."

/…/

"They've been quiet."

Griffin was sitting on the balcony railing with his legs dangling over the edge. He hadn't even flinched when Kalen's voice had suddenly broken through his deep thinking. She closed the sliding glass door before walking all the way out onto the balcony. She stepped up to stand next to him with a foot or two of space between them.

They were in the penthouse apartment of one of the tallest buildings in the city. It was one of their three secret locations. The Ancients had chosen this location because they knew the warlords would assume they would keep a low profile (i.e. _not_ a penthouse).

Griffin always seemed so calm and now was no different. It's why Kalen thought of him as her older brother and second-in-command.

"It is true. They have been exceptionally quiet since their return." Blink. "It surprises me."

Leaning her arms on the railing, Kalen turned to look at the other Ancient.

"We're both over two hundred years old. I thought nothing surprised you anymore, Griff," Kalen said in a teasing tone.

Griffin smiled and released a small chuckle.

"Well, it is the warlords we are talking about," Griffin pointed out.

"Yes. And one of them happens to be my ex-boyfriend," Kalen murmured.

Griffin chuckled again, earning him a confused look from his female companion.

"Did you two ever _actually_ break up? I mean the man _was_ in his animal spirit form when we banished him," Griffin grinned.

Similar to a certain television program special agent, Kalen slapped Griffin on the back of the head with her open palm.

"Griffin!"

Griffin continued laughing as he hoisted himself up onto his feet to stand up on the thin railing. He now stood sideways towering over Kalen with his back to the still darkened horizon.

"It is true, Kalen. He may still see you as his. As a possession. You said he was possessive before, correct?" Griffin said, his tone betraying how nervous he was about his statement.

Kalen let out an agonized groan as she leaned her body back but laid her forehead down on the cold railing. She muttered a few curses in their native language. Griffin shook his finger at her.

"That's not G rated language, Kalen," he teased.

Kale turned her head to glance up at her friend.

"I just realized that my _ex_ is probably going to be the _**biggest**_ nightmare of all eight of them. And that's saying something considering the original four warlords have history with me." Kalen's gaze narrowed. "I think I'm entitled to language that's at least PG-13."

With a chuckle, the dirty blonde couldn't help but agree with his leader and best friend. He knew of their history and it was in no way, shape, or form pretty. Instead he chose to change the subject.

"Is our young friend still sleeping?" Griffin asked.

Kalen nodded. Although they had several rooms in the penthouse, it was currently only Kalen, Griffin, Sawyer and Silver staying there.

That was usually how it was. The Ancients had a total of four locations to stay in, including the Hidden City within the Nether Realm. The other three locations were in various spots of Toyama. They were known as The Nest, The Village and The Lion's Den. The Nest was the penthouse apartment while the Lion's Den was an actual group of underground tunnels that led to a city for the Ancients.

The Village was an interesting place in itself. It was a small village of tree houses that were so high up and blended into the trees so well that no one was the wiser when passing underneath. This location was primarily an emergency location when people were in need of healing.

The Council divided themselves among the locations to keep watch over the other Ancients & the mortals. They moved around from time to time, but primarily stayed in their current locations. Kalen and Griffin were at The Nest (duh!), Tobi & Casper at The Village, and Selena & Kai at the Hidden City.

"It is good for him to rest. We have given him so much information in such a small amount of time," Griffin replied.

"'Tis true. It's only been a day since we dropped that bombshell." Kalen pushed herself off the railing. "I won't let him sleep in too late, though."

Meanwhile, in one of the smaller rooms, Sawyer lay curled up on his side fast asleep. Silver lay at the foot of the bed lightly snoring and sometimes twitching. Sawyer burrowed his face further into his pillow as he kept on dreaming. He dreamt he was soaring through the sky, high above the city.

Instead of being human, he was a bird. He wasn't sure what type of bird, but he was a large bird with a large wingspan. He soared through the air, beating his wings one time before just riding the air current. He felt so free and alive. Sawyer felt as though there was nothing in the world to worry about.

He breathed a sigh of relief in his sleep, causing Silver to stir. The canine lifted his head to look up at the head of the bed at Sawyer. His tail wagged. He was happy to have followed his human all this way and he would gladly follow him anywhere.

Sensing his human beginning to wake, Silver gently stood up and jumped down from the bed. He padded quietly out of the room and went in search of Kalen. He found her standing at the kitchen island chewing on the remainder of her breakfast. Upon spotting a piece of bacon dangling from her hand, the dog lay flat against the carpet and crawled low across the floor to her.

He got close by coming around the side of the island where Kalen couldn't see him. She took a bite of the bacon then brought her hand back down by her side. Before she could blink, the dog had nipped the bacon out of her hand and bolted out of the kitchen with his prize. Griffin, who had just been entering the kitchen, laughed at the truly surprised look on Kalen's face.

"Lladre company ánima [1]!" Kalen shouted after him.

Griffin continued laughing, but quieted down as Sawyer came trudging out of his bedroom wearing only pajama pants. He was holding his glasses in one hand while rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"What's a soul companion?" asked the sleepy yet curious former ronin.

Kalen raised an eyebrow.

"Better question. How'd you know that's what I called him?" Kalen asked.

Griffin interrupted both by pointing at Sawyer.

"I have a far better question. Where in the Great Spirits did that came from?"

What Griffin was referring to was a thick, angry scar on Sawyer's chest. It started at the center of his chest slightly at the top of the skin over the heart then curved down the center until it turned diagonal downwards. It ended over the eighth rib on the left side of his chest. It was half a millimeter thick, about seven inches long, and was a light pinkish, red color.

"This? It's an old scar," Sawyer replied, placing his glasses on his face.

Griffin reached his hand out; causing Sawyer to take an immediate step backwards with his hands up similar to that of surrender. Griffin murmured something in the Ancient tongue before reaching his hand out again. Sawyer cringed, but stayed still. He was surprised when the Ancient brought his hand close but did not touch the scar.

He watched as Griffin's eyes began going crazy. His eyes began shifting side to side like mad and he wasn't blinking. Sawyer opened his mouth to speak but stopped when he saw Kalen slicing the air in front of her throat with her hand. After a minute of this odd behavior, Griffin closed his eyes, dropped his arm to his side, and stepped back.

After letting out a staggering breath, Griffin slowly opened his eyes.

"I sense a lot of emotions. Anger, anxiousness, power hungry." Griffin took another, more steady breath. "How did you come by this scar?"

Sawyer sighed. Kalen was the only one who had seen this particular scar. He had a few small ones on his back as well.

"I got it when I broke free after Talpa absorbed me and the Wildfire armor. After I accidentally summoned the Inferno, I was so locked up in battle with Talpa I didn't even know I was bleeding. It turns out the…um…healing properties of the Inferno are limited. As we fought, the Inferno managed to stop the bleeding."

Sawyer sighed. Griffin was listening intently while Kalen was fetching a plate of food for him.

"The guys discovered it while I was unconscious and Sage tried to heal it. But the scar remained. Aside from them [the ronins], only Kalen knew about the scar. Mia and Yuli never found out about it," Sawyer said.

Griffin nodded. The man was lucky to have survived such an injury. He quietly asked Sawyer if it ever pained him. Sawyer nodded as he accepted the food plate from Kalen and leaned on the island.

"After waking up, it would flare up[2] from time to time. But it hasn't bothered me in a long time," Sawyer answered.

Griffin glanced at Kalen from over Sawyer's hunched body. Through the power of the cards, Kalen could feel a mixed wave of anxiety and concern emanating from her best friend. She wasn't sure why the other Ancient was showing so much emotion over an old scar.

"So what did Silver snatch?" Sawyer mumbled, taking a break between bites.

"The rest of Kalen's bacon," Griffin chuckled.

Sawyer chuckled, too, while looking up at Kalen. Would Kalen never learn? The three lapsed into silence until Griffin left without so much as excusing himself. Sawyer turned his head and followed him with his eyes. The Ancient walked back out to the balcony where he resumed his place on the railing.

"What's he doing?" Sawyer asked, turning his head back around to face Kalen.

"Griffin likes being out on the balcony. It's soothing for him to look out over the city. Plus, it allows him to sense large quantities of emotion from within the city. So if there's a large amount of emotions such as panic or fear, then we check it out," Kalen answered.

Sawyer nodded in understanding. Kalen allowed him to finish his breakfast before speaking again.

"We still have a lot to talk about, Sawyer. After all, knowledge _is_ power," Kalen told him.

Sawyer silently agreed. He placed his plate in the sink and followed him out into the living room. Silver slunk back into the room and laid down at Sawyer's feet.

"Should we review what we discussed the other day?" Kalen asked.

Sawyer shook his head.

"No. I think I'm good," Sawyer replied.

"Okay, then. I want to ask you about what you know of your past with the former ronins. When Talpa was still alive," Kalen said, dropping her voice at the mere mention of the deceased overlord.

Sawyer thought about this for a moment.

"Talpa came and the people of the city were taken. We fought before we were separated. Mia and Yuli came searching for me. After I fried Anubis and sent him back to the dynasty, we went and found the others."

Kalen listened to Sawyer reflect on his past as a ronin. When he arrived at the part where he had woken up, Kalen interjected.

"The warlords had already come to the others with their offer."

Somehow that didn't surprise Sawyer in the least. Then again not much had surprised him in the last one hundred and seven years.

"Anubis put on an act for the Ancient One in the first war and, unfortunately, he believed him. Anubis played the part of the warlord-turned-to-the-light very convincingly. After Talpa was defeated, the ronins thought the warlords gone, just like Talpa. After the dynasty's supposed final defeat, Anubis appeared before Sage one day while he was meditating; you were still resting," Kalen explained.

Sawyer closed his eyes as he listened. It lessened the dull pain a smidge.

"He told Sage he could live forever. Sage listened. What you must understand is that the power of the armors can be extremely overwhelming for mortals. Power can corrupt the mind and that is what happened. The armor turned his mind towards the idea but the majority of the decision was his own.

"He convinced the others. The warlords knew, however, that Talpa would soon grow back into power; he was only severely weakened from the Inferno. So they all played it safe, allowing things to happen naturally. When he came back, Anubis played his role once more with supposedly taking over for the Ancient One. Our leader was guiding him, thinking that he was true to his word."

Kalen weaved a tale of deceit in which the eight warriors [3] allowed Sawyer, Ryo at the time, to defeat Talpa. Then they proceeded to make him think the warlords had disappeared again. Until they had made another sudden appearance, drawing the ronins into battle. This was when Mia and Yuli had lost their lives.

Sawyer felt a tremor go through his body. He hated to think that Yuli never had the opportunity to grow up, to graduate high school and college, to marry and to have children.

"The Ancient One realized his mistake and contacted Selena through her meditation to come to your aid. I went down the river in search of you while the rest of the Council saved White Blaze from Sage and fended off the others. As you remember, he passed away from his injuries only a few days later."

Sawyer remembered. It had been devastating to hear his best friend had sacrificed himself for him. It had taken the combined efforts of Kalen and Griffin to calm Sawyer when they had first told him.

"What happened after the warlords' banishment?" Sawyer quietly asked.

Now that was truly a good question and a good place to continue the conversation.

"After we banished the warlords, we had a lot of cleaning up to do. Japan was in turmoil and the world had lost many lives. There had been tsunamis, earthquakes, and powerful lightning storms. We couldn't change what had been done, but we could change what _they_ knew.

"Using the combined powers of the Council members, we amplified Selena's power. We healed the minds of all the mortals. We removed the knowledge of any supernatural things that were observed. We altered the knowledge of the disasters, making them space out over time so there were no suspicions of anything other than natural disasters."

Sawyer thought that was a wise decision.

"Kalen!"

Kalen and Sawyer's heads whipped to the side as Griffin came sprinting back into the room. Griffin had a gravely concerned expression on his face.

"What's wrong?" Kalen asked.

"There's a large wave of panic downtown," Griffin reported.

"Check it out and let me know what's going on," Kalen commanded.

Sawyer watched in awe as Griffin changed. In one swift transformation, Griffin changed from a human to a large, white-tailed eagle. The eagle had a large head with a thick, yellow beak. He had a mousy-brown color with blackish feathers and a pure white tail. The eagle turned around and flapped his big wings to get airborne.

Sawyer watched as the eagle flew out the large opening of the sliding glass doors of the balcony. Kalen smiled as Sawyer turned his head to the side.

"You remembered we could do that, right? You've seen my form before," Kalen said, reminding him of her snow leopard form.

Sawyer nodded slowly.

"I remember, but yours is the only one I've actually seen. What are the others?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, as you just saw, Griffin is a white-tailed eagle. And naturally Tobi can become any animal. Casper can change into a giant fruit bat. And Selena can become a tiny green snake," Kalen explained.

"And Kai?" Sawyer asked.

"An Akita."

Sawyer tried to picture each person's animal form. Then he remembered Kalen's story from before about the warlords.

"The warlords are all the same animal. A wolf, right?" Sawyer asked.

Kalen nodded her head.

"Why?"

Kalen surprised him by shrugging. The Ancients weren't quite sure. One of their many theories was that the armors worked together as a collective group so naturally they would appear as a wolf pack. Sawyer thought about this as the phone rang and Kalen left to answer it.

If I still possessed the Wildfire armor, I wonder if I could have become a wolf, too, he pondered.

It was an interesting thought, but without Wildfire there would be no way to test that hypothesis. Kalen returned with a small, sad smile on her face.

"Is everything okay?" Sawyer asked.

"In a way. That was Griffin on the phone. He found out what the panic was about. There was a nasty car accident that involved five cars," Kalen explained.

"Is anyone seriously hurt?" Sawyer questioned.

"There are a few minor injuries, but everyone appears to be okay. Griffin believes it was just a mortal accident. Nothing more," Kalen answered.

Sawyer sighed in relief. For a moment there, he had been worried the warlords had decided to start something.

It's only a matter of time, Sawyer thought.

END OF CHAPTER FIVE

[1] – "Thieving soul companion!"

[2] – Flare up. Flare Up Now. Hehehe Excuse the unintended pun.

[3] Note: No Kayura. Nothing really against her but it's not a character I tend to use a whole lot.

**Author's Note: You know the drill. Type in the box below, write a few words telling me good things or areas needing improvement. Love you lots! **


	6. Chapter 6

**New chapter!**

CHAPTER SIX

Kalen trudged through the woods slowly with a destination in mind. It had been two weeks now and the warlords had been shockingly quiet. The Council and Kalen were greatly concerned. Silence was not normal for the warlords. It meant they were plotting and, by the Ancient Spirits, _that_ was _**never**_ good.

The blonde kept thinking back to the tarot reading she had done when the broken seal had first been found. It raised more questions than answers. The Council knew of her reading and was curious about it yet had not questioned her when she had refused to speak on it.

It is better they not know. At least for now, Kalen thought.

She stepped out of the woods and into a large, familiar clearing. Kalen could still feel the residual power burning in the air. Before, there had been a large rip through a tree that had shown through to the Nether Realm. After discovering this broken seal, Griffin had closed up the tear in case any mortals came by.

She stepped over the exact place the seal had been placed, bending down to run her fingers over the grass. She stayed knelt down with her eyes closed. Sometimes, she could still feel the Ancient One's presence and it helped her to guide and protect her people.

"Hello, Kalen."

Kalen opened her eyes and slowly stood up. She turned around to find a familiar figure standing only a few feet from her. His eyes seemed darker in color but there was no doubt in her mind who it was. Cye held his arms out in front of him as he chuckled.

"It's been quite some time since we've last been together, Kay," Cye said.

Kalen smiled while glancing down and taking a small step backwards.

"Ah, what's a hundred and seven years? Give or take," Kalen commented.

Cye's gaze narrowed yet his smirk remained. He let out a deep chuckle that sent tingles down her back.

"Have you missed me, love?" Cye asked.

If by you, you mean all eight of you, then Hell No, Kalen said to herself.

"I'd be lying if I said yes," Kalen confessed.

Cye threw his head back with a loud, dark laugh. Kalen shivered while taking another small step backwards. Cye was still chuckling when he brought his head back down.

"Oh, I've missed you greatly, love. We have _a_ _lot_ to catch up on," Cye said.

Suddenly, the warrior changed his appearance. In a matter of seconds and with the sound of cracking bones, he went from being human to that of a large, dark gray wolf.

"Dear Spirits, I think you got bigger," Kalen gasped.

The wolf seemed to smirk at her comment. He lunged at Kalen who in turn whipped around and jumped away. In mid-air she changed form so that when she landed it was on all fours of her snow leopard form. The wolf dove over her and whipped around so they were facing each other. The wolf snapped at her ear and the snow leopard threw up a paw in defense.

The two animals wrestled on the ground, scraping and snarling at each other. Finally, Kalen threw the wolf off her by grabbing him by the ear and biting down hard. A powerful hit against his stomach sent him flying. She rolled back to her paws and pushed off the ground to spring away in a sprint. Cye shook his furry head before chasing after Kalen.

The snow leopard raced across the clearing to enter the forest. She could hear the wolf darting around trees and over rocks behind her. She pushed her body to move quicker as she stretched the distance between them. She disappeared around a corner, momentarily darting out of sight.

The dark gray wolf followed behind her, darting around the corner after the snow leopard. He raced down the path and leaped over a group of thick trees that were lying side by side on the ground. He sped down the path until he was out of sight.

Had Cye's vision been less clouded, he would have noticed a large hole in the tree on the end. Kalen was crouched low and peeked out through a small hole. She smiled as she watched Cye disappear down the path. She quietly transformed back to her normal form. She propped her body up through the hole and pulled her body out of the tree.

"Not today, lover boy," Kalen murmured.

She walked carefully across the top of the fallen trees and jumped down, landing in a low crouch. She stood back up and adjusted her card deck's pouch on her side. Kalen jogged off in another direction. The young Ancient climbed down a formation of rocks to stand in a trickling creek with a few moss-covered rocks. The water level was so low it seemed more like one long puddle.

She walked through the water to mask her scent, incase Cye came back this direction. She traveled down the creek in silence. It was a few minutes later when a card slipped out of her deck. It moved outward and upward to float in front of her with the card facing away.

Kalen stopped and reached her hand up to grasp the card. She turned it around and saw a shocking image. She swore colorfully before slipping the card back into the deck. The Ancient twisted her head around when a loud howl ripped through the air.

She sprinted down the creek, splashing through the water without a care. Halfway down the creek, she transformed in a flash. Down at the start of the creek, two wolves jumped down the rocks Kalen had come down and raced down the creek. The two wolves caught up to her in no time and nipped at her tail and heels.

She scooped up a small, but sizeable rock with her tail and smacked the black wolf in the snout with it. The other wolf, a light gray one, dove on top of her, causing them both to tumble and splash through the water. They snarled, scratched, and floundered in the water. The black wolf shook his head to wave off the disorientation from the rock.

He leapt to his fellow wolf's aid. Kalen darted away, causing the wolves to collide and crumble into a pile on the water. Kalen leapt from the water and pushed up off their backs to get up onto drier land. Her only chance now was to reach higher ground before the rest of the damn pack showed up.

From different parts of the woods, wolves appeared in pairs. The two from the creek untangled themselves and communicated to the others which way the snow leopard had gone. The wolves closed in with two wolves, both dark gray, reaching the destination first. After the others arrived, they found Cale and Sekhmet leaning their backs against a tall stone cliff. Both had their arms crossed over their chests.

There was an opening towards the top of the cliff that could have been a cave of some sort. The others transformed back to their human forms upon spotting them. Dais stood cursing while Kento winced as he felt the side of his head and his nose. He too was saying some rather colorful vocabulary.

Cale smirked while turning his head towards his fellow veteran warlord.

"They get along so well, don't they?"

Sekhmet chuckled when the two glared at him. Cye was the one to speak, though.

"Where is she?" he asked, calmly.

There was a red line down the side of his neck from where his ear was bleeding. He didn't seem to give it any concern. Both leaning warlords brought one arm away and pointed up. The others glanced up. They couldn't spot any clues to give away Kalen's precise location.

"She's at the cave. We spotted a furry tail disappearing just inside when we broke through the trees," Sekhmet answered him.

Kento frowned.

"Then what the Hell we doing down here? It should take nothing to get up there," he said.

The original four warlords shot him looks. The ex-ronin in return shot them a confused look in return.

"What?" he demanded.

"Whether you like it or not, Hardrock, the Ancient has the higher ground," Cale told him.

Kento rolled his eyes. "How's that going to stop us?"

The others groaned. Kento really could be thick sometimes. Dais, being the patient one, tried to explain it in terms easy for him to understand.

"I feel compelled to remind you that this particular Ancient has been a thorn in _our_ side long before you four came along and she should not be underestimated. By having the higher ground, she is able to see us coming and can act accordingly before we even get close," Dais explained.

Refusing to believe the other warlord, Kento proceeded to figure a good way to get up there. Rolling his eye, Dais joined Anubis and Sekhmet.

"This shall prove to be interesting," he commented.

"Why's that?" Rowen asked.

Anubis chuckled as he stood next to the archer.

"Watch and see."

Kento figured he would try jumping from branch to branch on a tree that was near the cliff. From there, he would jump to the cliff and climb the rest of the way up to the cave. Except he didn't make it very far through his plan.

He managed to get to the second branch at a higher height when he immediately jumped out of said tree. Three arrows had come zipping through the air in quick succession. Two arrows landed in the branch where he had been and the third one grazed his cheek.

"We warned you," Sekhmet said in a sing-song voice.

"You didn't warn me she was armed!" Kento exclaimed.

This time, Sage snorted. He not so nicely reminded Kento of Kalen's card deck of "mysteries." Cye shook his head with a laugh before motioning to the others to be quiet.

"Kalen!"

/…/

Kalen held the card marked as The Archer in her hand as its image returned to the card face. She lay on her back on the cave floor. A card stood hidden at the edge of the cave entrance, acting as a mirror for her. An image of the eight warlords was being projected on the cave ceiling.

She had just heard her ex-, former, whatever 'lover' call her name. She pulled her body up to sit before scooting over to the edge. She summoned the mirror card back to her deck since her new spot gave her a good view of them, but gave nothing away of where she was.

"Tell Kento the next arrow will find itself lodged in a very unpleasant place!" Kalen called back down.

She saw Cye make a slicing motion at his throat to Kento who looked ready to start yelling obscenities.

"Duly noted!" Cye yelled back to her.

Kalen snorted quietly. If only he knew how empty the threat was. Even with the power of the cards, Kalen was still limited by what she could and couldn't do.

"That wasn't very sporting of you, love," Cye told her.

Kalen had to think for a moment on what he was referring to. At first, she thought he meant the arrows, but then she looked down to see him touching his bleeding ear. She decided to ruffle his feathers a little. After all, she had to stall for time somehow.

"I don't recall you complaining the _last_ time I bit you!"

Now the story behind that comment was innocent enough. Before the banishment, the two of them had been kissing on a park bench when the sprinklers had suddenly gone off. The cold water striking the back of her neck had surprised Kalen, causing her to jump and accidentally bite Cye's lower lip. She had apologized, but Cye had waved it off. It had only bled a little.

She peeked down below to see the other warlords covering up their laughter. Cale had even shifted his head to hide his face in Sekhmet's arm.

Score one for the Ancient, Kalen thought.

Cye wanted nothing more than to get his hands on Kalen right that instant. He gnawed his teeth and sent them all a mental message through the armor link.

[One word out of _any_ of you and I will toss your sorry ass to sharks.]

The others quickly clammed up. They knew this was no idle threat. Out of the eight of them, Cye was one of the more deadly warriors to worry about. He had an outer calm that gave him the harmless appearance of a dolphin, but in reality he was more ruthless than even a Tiger Shark.

"Where are the rest of your precious Council members, Kay?" Cye asked.

Kalen knew exactly where the other five Council members currently were. She only hoped Sawyer and Silver didn't accompany Griffin in coming to her aid.

"None of your damn business!" Kalen shouted.

"I suppose now, though, would be a good time to congratulate you!" she added.

Now she had caught their curiosity. Congratulate them on what exactly? Breaking the banishment seal and returning to the Mortal Realm? Seeing their confused looks, Kalen continued.

"I'm assuming that the length of time you've been gone added in with you four still standing means congratulations are in order!"

Ah. They should have known. She was offering them more of a sarcastic, semi-congratulatory upon their immortality.

"Thanks, Kay!"

Kalen turned her head when she heard something in the cave. She wasn't surprised when a large stone seemed to move by itself to reveal a small hole. Griffin's head suddenly popped up out of the hole.

"En problemes de nou [In trouble again]?" Griffin asked, keeping his voice quiet so it wouldn't echo out of the cave.

"Naturalment [Naturally]."

She glanced back down below to see Anubis tilting his head. It appeared he had heard her saying something in her native tongue. Judging by the confused look on his face, he probably couldn't decipher what she had said.

Griffin hid a chuckle behind his hand as he climbed up out of the hole. He walked carefully and slowly over to Kalen. She had her left arm cradling her right arm which had deep scratches that were still bleeding a little. Because they had not already healed, Griffin knew it was safe to assume she had received the injuries while in her animal form. It was one of a few disadvantages of having an animal form.

"Té alguna altra lesion [Do you have any other injuries]?" Griffin whispered as he knelt by her side.

"Em fa mal l'esquena [My back hurts]," Kalen whispered back.

She could hear Cye telling her something to which she threw a one word reply back. Griffin placed a hand on her shoulder, regaining her attention.

"Pots aixecar [Can you stand]?" Griffin murmured.

Kalen shook her head. She had tried when she had pulled her body up into the cave. She had taken a few hard hits as a snow leopard and she could feel the bruises aching all over her body. Griffin bent down to help her up. He ran an arm around her waist and let her grab his arm as they both pulled her up to her feet.

He started to walk her towards the mysterious hole when Cye's voice filtered up into the cave.

"What's the matter, Kalen? Cat got your tongue?"

Kalen gritted her teeth, but stayed calm thanks to the waves of emotion emitting from Griffin.

"Per qué jo [Why me]?" Kalen murmured.

She brought one of her hands down to her card deck. Without even looking, the blonde woman drew out a card from the center of the deck. She forced Griffin to turn and threw the card out of the cave.

The card floated out high above the warlords cloud before the face card flashed white. With that as the only warning, a large sea of water fell down upon their heads. In that few short moments, the card had returned to the deck and the two Ancients were gone.

/…/

Kalen lay on the couch resting on her side. She had her legs curled up and her face hidden from view with an arm bent over it. Sawyer walked over and laid a blanket down over her. When Griffin had returned with a nearly unconscious Kalen, Sawyer had jumped to his feet to help him walk her to the couch. Kalen had fallen asleep before her head had even hit the pillow.

Sensing his distress, Griffin had assured Sawyer everything was okay. Sawyer had asked him what had happened to her, but Griffin had refused to divulge the information. That certainly had not made Sawyer happy.

"Kalen will tell you when she is awake. I only know bits of what happened," Griffin had told him.

"Was it the warlords?" Sawyer had asked as he had been leaving the room.

Griffin had paused in the doorway for a moment before turning his head to the side a little.

"…yes."

Silver jumped up onto the couch and curled up underneath Kalen. He planted a paw over her ankles and laid his head down over her legs under the knees. Sawyer scratched his head softly before standing up. He walked over to the armchair and curled himself up while facing Kalen.

He picked up a book from the floor that he had been looking through earlier. Although he held it in his hands Sawyer made no move to open it. His gaze was on Kalen yet he stared off into space. He never noticed the weird yet eerily familiar symbols marked on the front of the book.

END OF CHAPTER SIX

**Come on, peoples! Tigergirl needs some reviews. **


	7. Chapter 7

**jrzgrl02:** Thank you, thank you! I can't remember where this plot idea came from, but I really started running with it. Sawyer being Ryo is the central part of the story. Ryo went "missing" because they turned rogue. I'm glad to hear you are still loving the Little Sister series. 12 hour shifts?! Woo! More power to you, sister. Just as a heads up, I'm going to try and post new chapters sometime this weekend for "Little Sister was Born Trouble" and "Spirit of the Armors: Spirit's Awakening". Keep reading and reviewing!

CHAPTER SEVEN

"Where are we going?" Sawyer asked.

Griffin only smiled at him as they walked down the sidewalk. They had left Silver behind to watch over a resting Kalen. She had woken for breakfast and had given Sawyer the short version of what had happened. Then she had allowed herself to rest after Griffin had assured her everyone was fine and the warlords were still quiet amongst the mortals.

Griffin was walking beside him in a hoodie similar to his except he had his hood up. He had softly explained to Sawyer that he didn't want to risk any of the warlords being in town and seeing him with Sawyer.

"If you are seen with any of us, they could assume you are an Ancient. Or worse, one of the Council," Griffin had warned him when they had left.

He didn't recognize the part of town they were in. Griffin led him down the street and around a corner. They walked in silence until Griffin finally stopped in front of a large building. Sawyer looked up in surprise.

"You brought me…to church?" Sawyer asked befuddled.

Surely, Kalen's injuries didn't warrant the need for praying. Griffin, sensing his friend's thoughts and feelings, patted Sawyer gently on the arm.

"Be not worried, my friend. There is someone here Kalen and I would like you to meet," Griffin said.

He led the former ronin inside. They walked down a hallway that led into the main hall. There were long lines of pews on either side of them. Down at the end was a long table of lit candles. A man stood there in front of the candles with a gaze turned upward.

The man turned around to face them as he heard their approach. Sawyer was both surprised and not surprised that the man wore the garments of a priest. He smiled at them.

"Hello, Father Christopher. May your Home be blessed with peace and good health," Griffin greeted while giving the man a small bow of his head.

Father Christopher chuckled quietly. Sawyer was starting to get confused. It sounded like Griffin knew the man. Like he knew him very well.

"Be led in Light, my son," Father Christopher replied with a small bow of the head.

Sawyer's eyes grew wide. What the He-, uh…good n plenty [1] was going on here? The two males shared a small chuckle at Sawyer's confusion.

"Sawyer, I want to introduce you to a special friend of ours. This is Father Christopher. Father Christopher, this is our very special friend Kalen spoke of," Griffin explained.

Father Christopher smiled as he reached out to shake Sawyer's hand. He murmured a small comment that Sawyer could only assume was a prayer in Latin.

"It is a great pleasure to meet you, Sawyer," Father Christopher said in a soft voice.

Sawyer thanked him and tried to mask his confusion, but obviously failed in doing that.

"I can see you are confused. Perhaps Griffin and I can shed some light for you. What confuses you?" Father Christopher asked.

Sawyer smiled awkwardly as he shifted from one foot to the other.

"I'm afraid you have me at a loss. Do you know about…uh?" Sawyer looked up and around confused.

What if someone overheard them talking about this?! Father Christopher placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Do not worry yourself, my son. We are alone. I asked that no one disturb me here today. And the answer is yes. I am well aware of Kalen and Griffin's unique gifts and their…family," Father Christopher said, slowly picking the right words to use.

Sawyer was quite stunned. Father Christopher allowed for Griffin to start the explanation.

"It has been a good number of years. Thirty-five years, if memory serves me right." Father Christopher nodded. "The cards told Kalen of a great disaster coming. This disaster turned out to be a major fire that broke out through town. One of the places it burned through was this very church."

"I was ten at the time and I was exploring through the church. I got trapped inside when the fire came. My father managed to make it to me, but our escape was cut off. When I was sure that we were to be taken from this world, Kalen and Griffin and the rest of the Council came to our rescue. Afterwards, my father asked to speak with our rescuers.

"Kalen and Griffin came to visit us in the hospital. My father was a very intelligent man and he knew there had been no possible way for them to have gotten through the fire unscathed. They confided in my father about their unique gifts. He was able to understand and surprisingly accept everything. However, he had one question for them."

Sawyer turned his gaze to Griffin.

"Why? He asked us why we would come to the aid of mere mortals. Kalen told him the truth."

"I told him what I had seen."

The other three turned to see Kalen walking down the aisle to them. She placed a soft hand on Sawyer's shoulder as she briefly passed him to give Father Christopher a small hug.

"It's good to see you are well," Father Christopher murmured.

"And the same to you," Kalen murmured back.

She turned around so she was standing next to the priest and across from Sawyer and Griffin.

"What did you see?" Sawyer asked.

"I saw a troubled youth starting to turn down the wrong path," Kalen said.

Sawyer turned his gaze to Kalen's side. Father Christopher briefly explained his rebellious start after his mother had passed away and his father had moved here to start a church and a new start.

"Until his dying day, my father believed Kalen, Griffin, and the rest of the Council were my personal Guardian Angels. And for quite a time, I believed so, too. In the middle of my seminary, Kalen and Griffin confessed to _me_ about what they are able to do and told me about their people," Father Christopher further explained.

Sawyer politely asked him if that went against his beliefs.

"It did take me some time to accept it, but I still believe the Lord sent them into my life so that I could re-find myself. I have offered eternal sanctuary here for any of the Ancient people who seek refuge here," Father Christopher told him.

Sawyer was stunned. How could the man promise such a thing? Surely, Kalen and Griffin wouldn't want to risk the warlords' wrath upon this holy building. Griffin placed a hand on his shoulder and he felt not a wave of comfort, but a wave of cheer.

"Do not worry for Father Christopher and the church, Sawyer. _They_ cannot set foot on holy ground and the Council has blessed this church personally so that no harm may come to it," Griffin explained.

Now he understood. Father Christopher really could offer true sanctuary to the Ancients in their greatest time of need.

"We try to visit Father Christopher often. Sometimes, we also volunteer on behalf of the church," Kalen added.

Sawyer smiled. It sounded like a good deal to him.

"I would like to offer my services as well, Father Christopher," Sawyer told him.

Father Christopher nodded his head with a smile.

"We would be pleased to have you. There's actually a project going on right now if any of you are interested," Father Christopher said.

Kalen clapped her hands together with a smile.

"We would be happy to, Father. What's the project?"

"A Habitat for Humanity project. We just started the other day. We could always use a helping hand."

/…/

He let out a deep sigh as thunder rumbled overhead. The cool breeze and the smell of rain made him appreciate being back on the mortal plane. He wasn't surprised when he felt a shift in the wind.

Sage smirked.

"I hope you're not trying to sneak up on me."

A dark chuckle emitted from the shadows as Cale appeared on the bridge beside him. They stood high up on a beam of a bridge where no one could possibly see them. Sage turned his head to regard his fellow warlord with his one, uncovered violet eye. Cale roughly bumped Sage's shoulder as he came to stand next to him.

"I would never. Anubis learned that firsthand," Cale said, chuckling.

It was true. It hadn't been pretty the first (and only) time one of them had snuck up on Sage. Who knew the ex-ronin could be so ruthless over someone catching him by surprise? Sage released a chuckle of his own.

"Did you come out here simply to bait me, brother?"

Over time, despite their differences, the eight warriors had come to identify each other as brothers of sorts. Cale shook his head.

"Not at all, Sage. I'm only curious as to what brings you out here," Cale answered.

"The same thing that brings you out, Cale."

The two of them were drawn to thunderstorms. The power and intensity of the lightning was intoxicating for them. On more than one occasion, the two had disappeared during a storm, only to return much later. The weather charged their armors, giving them basically a high level of energy. The others had thrown them out of the house on more than one occasion because of said 'high.'

A car passed over the bridge down below. One quick glance down told them the driver was young and experiencing some trouble with driving. Cale smirked. He moved forward to direct the lightning from the storm when Sage clapped a hand on to his arm. Cale gave him a vicious glare while Sage stared calmly back at him.

"We have to keep to the plan. We already managed to draw Kalen out in the open," Sage reminded him.

Cale backed off with little complaint. He remembered. Shortly before breaking the seal, the warlords had concocted a plan for how to deal with the Ancients.

Consider yourself lucky, mortal, Cale thought as he watched the car drive off the bridge.

/…/

He stood out on the balcony with his hands on the railing. Off in the distance he could see the flashes of light that were accompanying the approaching storm. Sawyer could see why Griffin enjoyed standing out on the balcony. It really was a wondrous sight to see over the town and spot different key locations such as the University.

Silver lay at his feet with his eyes closed. Sawyer knew the canine wasn't really sleeping, but he didn't disturb the resting canine. The cool breeze blew his hair back and out of his face. He took off his glasses and wiped them clean before placing them back on his face.

Wearing glasses gave him an advantage. Only the Council knew that Sawyer's glasses were nothing but regular glass. He could easily feign bad eyesight without them on and no one would be the wiser. Sawyer knew it was only a matter of time until he came face to face with one or all of the warlords.

A lot of scenarios were running through his mind. Would they recognize him? Would he be able to maintain his calm? Would they meet here or in the Nether Realm?

"Ser portat a la llum [Be led in Light]," he murmured.

Suddenly, Sawyer stood up straight. This time, he had caught it. He had just spoken in the Ancient tongue _and_ he _understood_ what he had just said.

"How is that possible?" Sawyer mumbled.

END OF CHAPTER SEVEN

[1] Note: I heard the term "Oh my good n plenty" online somewhere where it was a typo since it was supposed to be "Oh my goodness!" I just picture Sawyer thinking "What the Hell…?" but that he would change his thought process when he remembered where he was standing. Thus, the sentence "What the good n plenty was going on here?" was born. (Extra note: I originally made this particular note at 10:30 at night.)

**Keep up the reviews, everyone! Especially jrzgrl02. **


	8. Chapter 8, Part I

**jrzgrl02: **Hehehehe So many good questions. There is something between Griffin and Kalen but you won't find out until later. Same thing for things going for Cye and Sawyer (Ryo). I plan to keep up writing like this for a very long time. I'm already looking ahead for the Little Sister series, Spirit of the Armors and this story. I'll keep writing if you keep reading.

CHAPTER EIGHT

PART 1

_He was flying high in the sky. He swooped through the sky as if he were a fishing line zipping through the water. He soared over water and trees. Down below he noticed as he flew overhead of the Hidden City. Children were running around and laughing. There were some of the younger children pointing up and calling out._

"_He's here! He's here!" called a little girl._

"_There he is! Wow!" yelled a little boy._

_He flew down low before touching down at the fountain. He spotted Kalen who came walking up to him with a soft smile on her face._

"_Hello there. It's been a few days since we've last seen you. Are you hungry?"_

_He nodded his head. His vision blurred as he watched Kalen turn away._

/…/

Sawyer slowly opened his eyes. It was that dream again.

This wasn't the first time Kalen or one of the other Ancients had appeared in the dreams. Whether they appeared or not, Sawyer never spoke in these dreams. In the dreams, he was always light and soaring through the sky without a worry. In some dreams, he was hungry and others he was tired.

Out of instinct, Sawyer reached over to the nightstand for his glasses. He placed them on his face as he sat up in bed. He picked up a composition notebook and pen. He began writing the dream down in the book. He had started a dream journal in hopes of figuring out what it all meant. He was just getting out of bed when Griffin appeared in the doorway. The Empath grinned.

"Glad to see you're up. I was wondering if you'd like to go back to the Hidden City with me and train with me and Kai," Griffin offered.

"Are we going to leave Kalen here alone?" Sawyer asked, surprised.

Griffin shook his head. He explained that Selena would come here in his place to stay with Kalen. Sawyer looked at the clock on his stand before turning back to Griffin.

"Can you give me an hour to get ready?" Sawyer questioned him.

"Of course. Take your time. Don't rush."

/…/

It had not taken long for Sawyer to get ready and to leave with Griffin. The coolest thing had been when Griffin had opened a door to the Nether Realm. He had touched a decal on the sliding glass doors leading out to the balcony with an open palm. The symbol had glowed before the door experienced a rippling effect.

Griffin, who had stood beside him, had thrown his arm around behind him and shoved him into the sliding glass door. To his surprise, he hadn't smashed into the door and horribly broken his glasses. Instead he had slipped through the door and landed feet first in front of Kai who had laughed at his shocked expression.

Now they were standing on the outskirts of town where another fountain was in place. Sawyer watched in amazement as a large line of water was directed by Kai's hands. He swept the water around through the air, moving his body in motions similar to Tai Chi. Griffin stood next to him watching with a smile.

"Kai is an Elemental. Controlling water comes second nature to him," Griffin told him.

"Is water the only elemental?" Sawyer asked.

"Sort of. He has full water elemental power and partial wind elemental. The wind…speaks to Kai. It can carry good and…not so good words to him," Griffin explained.

Sawyer wondered what that meant, but decided to leave it for now. Griffin invited him to start with some exercises before their training. They did push-ups, pull-ups, a few jumping jacks, and some basic flips such as cartwheels and handstands.

Then the two of them started sparring. Griffin was impressed with Sawyer's fighting abilities. He had been afraid that in all this time he, Sawyer, would have gotten at least a little 'rusty.' He was good at offense and defense. Griffin finally managed to land him on his back with a few swift punches and a sweeping of his legs. Sawyer held up his hands in surrender as Griffin stood over him.

Griffin smiled as he straightened up and offered Sawyer a hand. Sawyer grabbed his hand and was hauled up to his feet.

"Very good, my friend. You are a very talented fighter, Sawyer," Griffin complimented him.

"Thanks, Grif. You're very good, too," Sawyer replied.

Sawyer glanced over at Kai who was now practice fighting against illusionary enemies. He used the water of the fountain to sweep up his enemy into a large ball of water that he (the target) couldn't escape from. Then he swept his arms down, bringing the water ball down onto the ground. The target was knocked unconscious by lack of air and the tidal wave of water smacking it to the ground.

"I'd hate to have him on my bad side," Sawyer murmured.

"You don't know the half of it," Griffin whispered back to him.

Sawyer chuckled. He knew the older man was right. Next they worked on weapons practice. They had a wide assortment of weapons they chose to practice with. Sawyer was still quite skilled with katanas which made Griffin suspect the man had been training for some time after his revival.

Next they tried a few weapons Sawyer wasn't too familiar with. They tried throwing stars, a pair of sais, and a hanbo (short staff). Finally, they finished up with bows and arrows.

"Have you ever shot an arrow before?" Griffin asked.

Sawyer nodded.

"Before um…Talpa's return, Rowen taught me how to shoot. I can hit a decent target from a distance, but we never got on to practice on moving targets," Sawyer explained.

"You're in luck, my friend. We Ancients are known for our archery skills. I would be more than happy to help you enhance your skills," Griffin informed him.

Sawyer smiled and clapped Griffin lightly on the shoulder.

"I'd like that," he replied.

In return, Griffin's smile grew. He was happy to see Sawyer was adjusting well to all the changes. He set up a few normal targets and explained to Sawyer he wanted to see what he knew so far. Sawyer didn't tell Griffin that after moving to his final home he had taken a few lessons in archery as a refresher.

He lined up his arrow just how he remembered being taught and released. He shot three arrows at three different distances. When Griffin checked them, he was pleased to see the two closer distances were dead on and the furthest distance was near the bullseye.

"You're good, Sawyer. Let's try with some moving targets. Kai! Practice time!"

Kai glanced over and smirked. Sawyer watched fascinated as Kai spun a small bit of water around in his hands before turning it oval-shaped. From there, he blew on the oval water disk, turning it into ice. Sawyer brought an arrow to his bow and raised it up.

From a few feet behind Sawyer, Griffin gave Kai the signal. Kai held the ice disk above his hand before slinging it up into the air like a Frisbee. Sawyer tried to watch it as he lined up the shot but he ended up missing it. Kai let out a loud chuckle while Griffin shot him a look as he stepped up beside Sawyer.

"Moving targets are much harder to hit than stationary. The key with hitting a moving target is anticipating its movement and shooting the arrow a few seconds ahead so that it hits the target," Griffin explained.

Sawyer slowly nodded. The thought process made sense to him. Kai had already set up another ice disk and was standing ready to launch it. Sawyer drew another arrow, lined it up with his gaze on the sky and nodded to Kai. The young Ancient zipped it into the sky with a twist of his body.

Sawyer watched and waited. He followed the projectory of the disk, predicted where it was going, and let the arrow go. The three of them watched as the arrow managed to catch the side of the ice disk, taking a good pizza pie shaped chunk out of the ice.

Sawyer let a smile slip over his face while Griffin clapped his hands. Kai created another ice disk and called out to Sawyer.

"Ready for sa'more?" Kai called out to him.

Sawyer grinned.

"Bring it on, Kai!"

For the next hour, Sawyer practiced hitting the ice disk targets. He managed to hit various spots of each one. Finally, on the last disk, he hit the dead center, shattering the ice into pieces. Kai jogged over to slap him a high five.

"Dat was awesome! You are da real deal!" Kai congratulated him.

Not sure what he was talking about, Sawyer just smiled and accepted the praise. It felt good to hear nice things. Even if it came from someone he hadn't known long.

Suddenly, a breeze picked up and Kai's smile faded. He turned his head to the side as if listening to a whisper. Griffin stepped up beside Sawyer with a concerned look on his face. He could sense the growing dread in the other Ancient. Kai turned his head back around to face the two of them.

"What is it?" Griffin quietly asked, making sure not to spook the other.

"Something's happening," Kai gasped. "In the Mortal Realm."

/…/

Selena ducked behind a fallen tree, just narrowly avoiding the sure kill. Tobi was somewhere above her in the treetops trying to give her cover. Selena had summoned Tobi from The Village. Casper had gone to The Lion's Den to check up on the Ancients down below for any signs of the warlords; the last thing they wanted was for that particular place to be found. Kalen was somewhere in downtown; supposedly unaware of what was happening.

They were slightly outnumbered by two to five. Selena glanced up to see a bobcat leaping from tree to tree by the high branches with chains shooting out after him. They had the worst of the bunch after them today. The only warlords missing from the fray were Cye, Dais and Sage.

"IRON ROCK CRUSHER!"

Selena felt the ground rumble and break. She stood up and made it a few feet before taking a running leap. The tree she had been crouched behind was no more than a few splinters of wood now. She caught a branch with her hands and hauled herself up onto the branch to crouch low.

The bobcat landed on the branch with her while transforming back into Tobi in human form.

"Where tha Hell are dey?" Tobi hissed.

"I do not know, but we had better keep them occupied _here_ before they move it onto the city," Selena reminded him.

The warlords were quietly closing in from all sides of the tree the two Ancients were in. Yet they remained unaware.

"I sent a message to Kai, but I can't reach Kalen. She must be too far away," Selena added.

Tobi muttered a curse in the Ancient tongue.

"Well, I guess we are being royally fu-AHH!"

A lit-up arrow blew apart the branch they were crouched on, sending them both falling downwards.

Meanwhile, in downtown, Kalen had finished her work at the Soup Kitchen. She had been working the majority of the day serving food to those that came in. Kalen grabbed up her jean jacket and slipped it on. Father Christopher's wife appeared in the doorway as Kalen was leaving.

"Bless you, child, for all your help," she thanked her.

Kalen smiled as the older woman took her hands in hers.

"You're very welcome, Henrietta. I had a good time today. Thank you for showing me around the kitchen. I would have been lost without you," Kalen smiled.

"Any time, darling. We enjoy having you and your friends volunteer with us," Henrietta told her.

Kalen smiled and gently pulled her hands away. She left out the doors and walked down the sidewalk with no clear destination in sight. She took her cell phone out of her pocket to check for messages. She was surprised to find no voicemails or text messages.

Kalen accidently walked into someone as she was putting her phone away. This caused the other person to stumble to the ground.

"Oh! I'm so sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going," Kalen apologized as she held out a hand.

The stranger grasped her hand and allowed her to help him to his feet. It was a young man with dark-colored hair and forest green eyes. He flashed a playful smile at her.

"I should be the one apologizing. I ran into you," he said.

Kalen smiled and nodded her head.

"Okay. Then I guess we're both at fault. If you'll excuse me," Kalen said, stepping around him to walk down the sidewalk.

The man looked over his shoulder with a smirk.

"It seems you're getting rusty, Kalen. Your precious deck didn't even warn you this time," he murmured.

Another figure, a familiar blonde with his hair covering over one of his eyes, walked around him from behind to stand beside him.

"Cale just called. They got one of the Council members," Sage told him.

Dais kept his gaze on Kalen while listening to Sage.

"Which one?" Dais asked.

"The female," Sage answered.

Dais smirked. "Perfect."

/…/

The last of the chains were wrapped around her legs, keeping them together in front of her. Anubis stood in the background as he finished using his armor's power to tighten the chains around their captor's body. She was chained to a chair in the middle of the room. Her arms were tied to the chair arms, leaving them face up and rigid with the chains tied around her wrists and upper part of her arms.

Sekhmet was crouched down by the chair's side with something in his hands. Anubis watched as the other man rubbed a cotton ball over Selena's upper arm before picking up a needle full of a light blue solution. He inserted the needle where the cotton ball had been rubbed and the liquid was injected. Selena's body gave a small jerk as she started to come to.

Sekhmet rolled Selena's shirt sleeve back down and stepped away with his stuff.

"Give her about a minute before you start your questioning. Remember what I told you," Sekhmet murmured to him on his way out.

Anubis rolled his eyes. He remembered well what his fellow warlord had told him. The man had experimented with his drug beforehand, but Selena would be the first Ancient to be tested with it. As he walked into the light of the room, he pulled a chair up so he sat in front of her. Then he waited.

Selena slowly came to consciousness and wished she hadn't. She could feel the chains wrapped around her body and a small, sharp pain in her left arm. The pain reminded her of when she had last received a flu shot. She pulled her head up from its place on her chest slowly with her eyes still closed.

"Why am I here?" Selena asked, quietly.

"Because we wish it," said a familiar voice.

Slowly, Selena opened her eyes to stare directly into the gaze of the former warlord leader. Anubis smiled, but she wasn't fooled. It was a false smile that was a borderline smirk.

"We would like some answers. Who better to ask than an Ancient Council member?" Anubis replied, the smile morphing into a clear smirk.

She narrowed her gaze at him. Anubis leaned back in his chair.

"I'd like to play a little game, Ancient. It's called Truth. I ask you a question and you tell me the truth," Anubis said, chuckling.

Then he leaned forward in his chair.

"I'd like to start with asking you what your name is."

Selena started to answer, fully prepared to lie to him, when she felt an unimaginable spike of pain electrify through her body. She gasped and her eyes went wide as her body jerked in the chair. Finally, after the wave passed, she spoke.

"S-Selena," she murmured.

"Thank you, _Selena_," Anubis said, putting strong emphasis on her name. "I am happy to see Sekhmet's experiment is working well. You see, he injected you with an experimental solution."

She bit back a curse. That would explain why the pain had passed when she thought of her name instead of a fake name. This was bad. This was _**very**_ bad.

"I forgot to mention another part of our game. If you attempt to lie, you will be forced to endure an unspeakable amount of pain. It will go away when you decide to tell me the truth," Anubis added.

Selena took in a few deep breaths in which Anubis stayed quiet. He knew he would need the Ancient calm in order for this to work.

"Are you calm now?" he asked.

"Yes."

This answer had been immediate and pain-free. He wasn't surprised when Selena asked him a question.

"Why are you the one interrogating me? Why not Sekhmet or one of the others?" Selena questioned him.

The next words spoken to her were not in English or Japanese, but in her native tongue.

"Perqué jo sóc l'únic que pot entendre si vosté parla en la seva llengua native [Because I am the only one who can understand you should you speak in your native tongue]," Anubis answered.

She sneered at him. It was a great mystery as to how one of the warlords had come to be fluent in the Ancient language. It made Anubis one of the most deadly of the warlords.

"What are the names of all the Council members?" Anubis asked.

"Myself, Kalen, Griffin, Tobi, Jasper…_ugh_…and Kai," Selena answered, wincing when a jolt passed through as she thought of excluding Kai.

This…_poison_ isn't giving me any leeway, Selena thought.

Anubis counted the names in his head as Selena listed them. He remembered back to the banishment and the placement of the seal. Minus the Ancient One, there had only been five Council Members.

"You've added a new member since our banishment, haven't you?"

"Yes."

While he was questioning Selena, the others were downstairs talking. As far as he knew, Sage, Dais and Cye were still trailing Kalen downtown. According to Sage, their presence seemed to be blocking Kalen from finding out anything had happened.

Anubis stood up and walked over to a small table where he poured a glass of water. He walked over to sit back on his chair. He held the glass out to her.

"Are you thirsty?" Anubis asked, innocently.

"…yes."

Anubis scooted forward in his chair and tilted Selena's head back, tipping the glass to gently pour the water into her mouth. Selena took a few small gulps of water before moving her head away in a clear show of refusal. He brought the glass away and placed it on the floor beside his chair. There were so many questions to ask and so little time. Sekhmet had warned him that though it was powerful the serum was limited by its time constraint.

"What was the point to banishing us and creating the seal?"

Although they all had their theories, they were quite curious to find out the real reason. Selena was silent for a moment. She wasn't seizing in pain so Anubis figured she was thinking about her answer.

Interesting, he thought.

"You were…destroying the lives of the mortals and the _ex-ronins_ betrayed one of their own. Kalen saw a vision of the future and told the Council and the Ancient One we had to seal you away," Selena answered.

A part of her heart was aching. She felt as though she were betraying her people, betraying the Council, betraying Kalen. She only prayed to the Ancient Spirits Anubis didn't ask any questions that led to Sawyer and his real identity.

He's not ready for that. None of us are ready, Selena thought.

Anubis frowned. Kalen's cards had revealed something about their [the warlords] future? He wondered what that vision had entailed so that was his next question. To his surprise, Selena shook her head.

"None of us know what she saw. Kalen refuses to tell us," Selena murmured.

Anubis frowned deeper. Wonderful. A question that would go unanswered until Kalen was snatched up like Selena.

And right now that's not likely to happen, Anubis thought.

/…/

Kalen was standing at the crosswalk waiting for the Walk sign. She had started heading back to The Nest, but had had the strangest feeling that she had better not go that way. So instead she had headed back over towards the University. Occasionally, the blonde would glance over her shoulder.

I swear to the Ancient Spirits that someone is following me, she thought.

She knew she wasn't being paranoid. She'd been chased most of her life by the original four warlords; she had a _right_ to feel like she was being followed. The Walk sign lit up, but Kalen still looked both directions before darting out and over to the other end of the sidewalk.

Now she had a destination in mind. At the end of the next corner was a coffee shop which she quickly darted through the open door when someone was coming out. She ordered a beverage she knew would take a while.

"It's going to take a few minutes. I hope that's okay," the cashier said, apologetic.

"That's okay. I need to use the bathroom," she replied.

She quickly walked down a hall and into the bathroom. Kalen went into a small stall where she sat up on the toilet with her feet on the toilet seat. She took her card deck out and reached out to place it floating out in front of her. The deck wasn't glowing or making any moves other than floating in mid-air. Kalen knew better than to be fooled.

"_Revelar els secrets _[Reveal the secrets]," she murmured, quietly.

The deck flashed once, twice before the two cards slipped out from top and bottom of the deck. Unlike most of her cards, these two cards revealed two of her Council members. One card supposedly showed Tobi but it showed a large pile of tree branches and rocks. Another card showed Selena tied up to a chair with a shadow standing beside her.

"_Merda_," Kalen cursed, louder than she would have preferred.

The cards disappeared back into the deck and the deck reappeared in the pouch at her waist. She continued cursing as she whipped out her cell phone. She quickly hit speed dial and waited.

"_Kalen! Oh, thank God! Are you okay?_"

Sawyer's words did nothing to soothe her nerves.

"What's happened?" she asked.

"_Kai heard a warning from the wind. We came back and Silver helped us find Tobi. He's unconscious and has a few injuries but Griffin says he'll be okay. We can't find Selena anywhere._"

Kalen let out a string of curses. She knew where Selena was and _who_ had her. She quickly traded a few words with Sawyer as she came up with a plan.

/…/

"Extra-large, fresh, hot chocolate with a shot of gingerbread flavor!"

"Right here!"

Kalen stepped up to the counter and thanked the woman for her drink. She took a small sip and jerked her head back. She should know better by now when drinking hot beverages. She blew down into the cup for a few seconds as she left the store. Kalen started walking down the sidewalk while sipping her hot chocolate. Unknown to her, three figures carefully followed her every move as they each kept an eye on her from different directions.

END OF CHAPTER EIGHT


	9. Chapter 8, Part II

CHAPTER EIGHT

PART 2

"Extra-large, fresh, hot chocolate with a shot of gingerbread flavor!"

"Right here!"

Kalen stepped up to the counter and thanked the woman for her drink. She took a small sip and jerked her head back. She should know better by now when drinking hot beverages. She blew down into the cup for a few seconds as she left the store. Kalen started walking down the sidewalk while sipping her hot chocolate. Unknown to her, three figures carefully followed her every move as they each kept an eye on her from different directions.

A moment later, a figure stepped out of the coffee shop. They were wearing a hoodie with their hood up and a bandana covering their face from nose down. Their eyes narrowed as they watched the three figures carefully follow after Kalen.

"_Morons_," they murmured, before turning around and taking off in a run in the opposite direction.

The afternoon was starting to turn to dusk. There wasn't much time left.

/…/

Anubis sat back in his chair with a smirk of satisfaction. He had found out a lot of information in the short amount of time the serum had been in the Ancient's system. Now it had worked its way out of her system. Sekhmet had told him before that it would be two hours before the unwilling volunteer could be dosed again.

He pushed himself up to his feet so he was able to look down at the helpless Ancient. Selena had slumped down in her chair with her head lying down on her chest. She had fallen unconscious due to exhaustion several minutes ago. He leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"Thanks for playing the game, little Ancient."

Anubis stood up and left the room. He didn't even bother locking the door. There was no way that Ancient was getting out of her restraints. Hearing his feet travel down the hall, a figure stepped out of the shadows. It was Selena. Or, more precisely, her astral projection.

"Thank the Spirits I got away with only telling you I'm a Mind Healer," Selena murmured.

He would have never left her alone if she had been forced to tell him about her ability to astral project. She walked over to her still body, looking for a way to break the chains from her body. After several quiet minutes of searching, she finally found a spot just underneath the seat of the chair.

I would have never been able to find this, Selena thought.

She reached under and pulled hard. It took several strong tugs to finally break the end of it. She slowly pulled the chains from her body and laid them on the floor quietly. If she made any loud noises, it would alert the warlords down below and then her chances of escape would go from slim to none.

With her body now free of chains, her astral body returned to her body and Selena lifted her head. She let out a small groan as she ever so slowly climbed to her feet. She was more tired than anything else, but she could still feel lingering effects from the serum.

Selena trudged over to the window where it was cracked open. At her request, Anubis had opened it a small bit so it didn't get too hot for her. She looked out the window and was pleased to see nightfall approaching.

That will make this so much easier, Selena thought.

She took in a deep breath before transforming. Her bones and muscles shrunk as she changed from human to a slender, green snake. Her transformation had left her lying on the window sill. She slithered out the window and all the way down a drainage pipe to the ground floor.

Looking around, Selena made sure no one was out in the yard before quickly slithering across the dirt and grass to the woods. She didn't know how long it would be until one of the warlords came up to the room to check up on her. She slithered as far as she could before exhaustion started to finally sink in. She curled up under a tree to rest and tried not to fall asleep.

A large shadow fell over her, causing her body to tense up. Her gaze moved upward, hoping beyond hope that it wasn't one of the eight. Her body sagged in relief when she looked up into the bright eyes of a familiar canine.

Silver stuck his face down close and sniffed at her. His tail started wagging and he bumped his nose gently against the little snake. She slithered up his nose, over his head, and wrapped around his neck firmly yet loosely. If anyone were to see Silver, it would look as though he were wearing a thin, green collar.

Silver turned around and started jogging away from the area. He was halfway through the forest when he stopped at the lake to lap up some water. Selena was fast asleep while still wrapped around his neck. Silver snapped his head up when he heard voices.

Walking along the lakeside were the three warlords that had been tailing Kalen in town. Silver moved to bolt out of sight when Cye spotted him.

"Looks like even strays will wander out this far," Cye said.

"I don't think he's a stray," Sage pointed out.

"What makes you think that?" Dais asked.

Sage pointed to the green around his neck. He commented that it looked like a collar to him. Dais chuckled.

"How fast do you think the mutt can move?" Dais asked.

Silver didn't like the sound of that. He lifted his head and took a few steps away while keeping his gaze on them. Cye told Dais to lay off.

"We don't have time to mess with the mutt. Anubis wants us back," Cye told him.

Dais rolled his eye.

"Three hundred years, he's the youngest of us four and…_I still wanna hit him_," Dais murmured under his breath.

Sage and Cye chuckled. The trio came close to Silver, but walked around him as they headed back to the warlords' location. Silver waited before shooting off in the opposite direction.

/…/

Kalen and Sawyer stood in the background while Griffin finished checking Tobi over. He was unconscious on the couch at The Nest. Casper was sitting on the floor next to his brother, holding his hand in a tight grip. Griffin placed a hand on Casper's shoulder and pushed slightly as he stood up.

"He'll be okay. Give him a few hours then we can transport him to The Village," he whispered to Casper.

Casper nodded silently. He knew his brother would be okay, but he was still quite concerned. The biggest concern was the transformation that had happened while incurring his injuries. Tobi had a tiger tail which was hanging down the side of the couch. His nose and small area around it was a bunny's nose and partial whiskers. His arms were smooth and full of scales like a fish.

We're lucky that he doesn't need water for his arms, Sawyer thought.

His thoughts were interrupted by scratching at the door and a high-pitched whine.

"I'll go let Silver in," Sawyer murmured.

He walked out of the living room and over to the small hallway near the door. He unlocked the door and pulled the door open. He quirked his eyebrow as Silver stood there with a big grin on his face and a lime green snake wrapped loosely around his neck.

"Is everything okay?" he heard Griffin call out to him.

Damn Empath, Sawyer shook his head silently.

"Silver has some sort of…green snake around his neck," Sawyer said, moving to the side to let the canine walk in.

The three Ancients all looked at each other before Griffin and Kalen darted for the doorway. Everything was in a whirlwind for Sawyer as the snake changed into an exhausted Selena slumped over Silver. The two Ancients quietly questioned her while Sawyer walked over and sat on the floor next to the twins.

Casper raised his empty hand to place it on Sawyer's shoulder. Sawyer felt the mental connection which faintly reminded him of the armor mental link he once shared with his ex-friends.

[Do you think Selena will be okay?]

Sawyer shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't see any physical injuries except a few small cuts on her face and arms."

He watched as Casper frowned yet kept his gaze on his twin.

[That sounds like injuries sustained in the fall from the tree. One of the warlords must have caught her or something.] Sigh. […but then why let her go?]

Sawyer shook his head vehemently.

"I don't think they "let" her go. She wouldn't have been in her animal form if they had done that," Sawyer said, voicing his honest opinion.

Thinking on the other man's words, Casper turned his head away from his brother. Casper tilted his head while looking at Sawyer.

[You are right. How could she get away from all eight of them, though?]

Sawyer reminded him that three of the eight had been trailing Kalen in downtown. Casper remembered. That meant getting away from five warlords, then.

[Do you miss them?]

Sawyer jerked his head in shock and nearly dislodged Casper's hand off his shoulder.

"Miss…_them_?!" Sawyer hissed.

Why in the holy name of the Ancient Spirits would he, the former bearer of the ronin armor of Wildfire, miss the Dark Warlords? Casper released his twin's hand in favor of turning around to fully face Sawyer.

[I am sorry. Tobi tells me I am not clear enough sometimes. I was not referring to _all_ of them. I meant the four who were your friends. You were close, were you not?]

Sawyer paused. He had gotten along with all of the other ronins but the other four had become closer with each other. More precisely, Sage & Rowen and Kento & Cye. He had had more of a secondary friendship with them. He had been the outsider with no siblings and a tiger as his best friend.

"I guess I thought we were close. I miss….I guess I miss the power of the armors that brought us together. If we…*pause*…if we had been closer, maybe I could have done something. Ah, but I've run that thought through my head over a hundred times." Pause. "No. I don't miss them personally."

Casper nodded quietly. There were no words he could say. He could only offer his shared pain by squeezing his shoulder. Sawyer smiled.

"Thanks, Casper. Would you like me to leave you alone with your brother?" Sawyer murmured.

Casper smiled.

[Yes, please. Tell Griffin he should be ready to be moved in about an hour.]

Sawyer looked surprised.

"Are you sure?" Sawyer asked.

[Yes.]

END OF CHAPTER EIGHT

PART 2

**And that's the end of Chapter Eight! **


	10. Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

Sawyer walked through the food court with his tray. He glanced around before spotting Kalen at one of the tables. He walked over and slid into the seat beside her. Kalen smiled at him as she took a bite of her pasta.

"I can't believe the size of this food court," Sawyer remarked.

It was a very spacious environment. It was two-story building with seating upstairs and down. Downstairs was the main entrance, a school store, stairs, and a long hallway that led to where the main school cafeteria and large open seating was. Upstairs were several eateries, seating, and a second, smaller, school shop.

Kalen had surprised Sawyer yet again by bringing him to the University. It turned out that the Ancient Council had free reign of the campus through their connection with Father Christopher. From next to her deck, Kalen's student badge hung at her waist from a retractable badge clip.

The two of them ate in relative silence. When they finished lunch, Sawyer leaned forward in his seat.

"Did Selena reveal a lot of your secrets?" Sawyer whispered.

Kalen scooted her chair around closer to Sawyer and dropped her voice to a whisper. If one were to look at them, they would have mistaken the two for lovers.

"Yes and no. Selena said whatever they shot into her bloodstream didn't last long. Anubis only asked her basic questions like who was on the Council and what their abilities were," Kalen answered.

"What about you? Did they ask about you?" Sawyer asked.

Kalen shook her head.

"No. We…Griffin and I…believe this is because the original four think they know all about me," Kalen smiled. "But they really don't."

Sawyer nodded. He was in agreement. After all, if Dais, Cale, Anubis and Sekhmet knew Kalen so well they would know she was the new "Ancient One." And there was no evidence of that.

"Thankfully, the serum or whatever was in the needle allowed Selena some leeway in her answering. It let her get away with giving simple answers."

"How simple?"

"With the exception of me, he asked her about the Council members' abilities. She said Mind Healer for herself, Empath for Griffin, Elemental for Kai, and so on."

"What are we going to do if they capture another Council member and dose them?"

Kalen explained that she and Griffin had formulated a plan. Griffin had taken a blood sample from Selena to analyze. They hoped that there still trace amounts of the serum in the blood.

"We plan to try and create an antidote."

Sawyer had many a concern about this, but chose not to voice it. Instead he chose to ask a different question.

"Did she reveal any of the locations?"

Kalen shook her head again.

"No. We have a special Ancient spell in place that prevents any Ancient from telling that particular secret if they are unwilling."

Thank the Ancient One's spirit for that! Kalen sighed.

"I'm worried. Usually, the warlords are direct and attack openly. They're being too subtle. I believe they have something planned. Something big," Kalen whispered.

Sawyer frowned. "Have you tried reading the cards?"

Kalen smiled faintly at him as she reached out to stroke the back of his hand with her thumb.

"It's not that easy. The cards don't always reveal what is to happen," Kalen explained.

Sawyer was surprised. He was learning more and more about Kalen each day. They moved their conversation on to better things as they discussed the possibility of Sawyer taking a class or two at the University.

/…/

Sawyer had left much earlier around two. It was much later (around seven or so) when Kalen left the University campus. Instead of heading straight back the penthouse, Kalen started on her way to the church. She felt compelled to visit with Father Christopher for at least an hour before retiring for the night. She had her head down sliding her finger across the touch screen of her phone as she walked.

With no one else around, a card slid out from her deck and appeared face-up on the phone. Kalen looked at the card and gasped.

"Oh, damn."

That was all the warning she got before her body was ripped backwards into a dark alley. A scream died in her throat when a hand holding a wet cloth clapped over her mouth. Her phone smashed to the ground with the card and slid away out of sight.

Kalen struggled violently against the strong arms holding her. She managed to jar the cloth from her mouth when she reared her leg forward then back to kick her attacker hard in the kneecap. A loud curse filled her ears.

"_Let go!_" she hissed, before throwing her head back.

The satisfying crack of a nose breaking was short-lived when the two arms behind her pinned her arms down and a wet nose was pressed against her shoulder blade. She was pulled back tight against the body behind her. Another figure, unseen through the darkness by Kalen, stepped up in front of her and brought the wet cloth back up to cover her mouth and nose. She could do nothing to prevent herself from breathing in the foul stench. Her eyes rolled back as she lost consciousness instantly.

The arms fell down from around her body and shoved her into the second attacker. He let out a dark chuckle as he scooped Kalen up into his arms.

"What's the matter, Ken? Don't care for your best friend's girl?" the voice chuckled.

Kento stepped out of the shadows holding the back of his hand up to his still bleeding nose. He shot his companion a glare.

"Shove it, Dais."

The Illusionist chuckled as he shifted Kalen so her head was tucked against his clothed shoulder/chest. The young-looking Ancient let out a small groan with the readjustment.

"If you recall, I warned you to get a good hold of her the _first_ time," Dais smirked.

Kento shot him a dirty look as he used his armor's healing ability to stop the nosebleed.

"Did you see what the Hell she dropped?" Kento asked, looking around at the ground.

Dais shrugged while making sure he had a good grip under Kalen's knees and around against her shoulder blades.

"Probably a snack or something. Leave it. We have places we need to be," Dais said.

Dais made sure he had a good hold on Kalen before shifting back to their hideout. Kento followed shortly after him.

/…/

"We won't be gone long."

Dais threw a few items into his bag before zipping it up and turning around to regard the other warlord.

Cye was sitting on the dresser with his back up against the wall and Kalen curled up on his lap. Her head was resting on his chest. He had a possessive arm wound around the Ancient's waist. The other hand was gently carding through her hair.

"Explain to me again why it's only the four of you going," Cye replied.

Dais rolled his eye with a chuckle.

"Because we need _you four_ to stay here and keep an eye on the Ancients. We'll be able to cross the realms and make it to the Zuri Nation a lot easier if it's just us four. Plus we're the ones who made the deal," Dais explained.

Cye made an hmm sound in the back of his throat. He tilted his head back to look down at his former lover. His hand stilled by her jaw to roll a thumb over her cheek. Even unconscious it still sent the chills down Kalen's back. This caused him to chuckle before sliding off the dresser and lifting Kalen bridal style up to his chest.

"Going to miss your little Ancient, Cye?" Dais teased, walking over to him with his bag slung over his shoulder.

Cye shrugged with a smug smirk.

"Maybe. But we all knew she was the bargaining chip. It's only a shame I won't see her face when she wakes up."

Dais chuckled as he reached out to pull a piece of hair away from where it had fallen into Kalen's face.

"Oh, I'm sure it will be very memorable. I'll be sure to tell you about it when we return. Would you mind carrying her downstairs? Cale should be down there and ready," Dais said.

Cye nodded. "And if he's not ready?"

Dais chuckled as he followed Cye out of the room but turned to head down the wall instead of down the stairs.

"Then I'll kick his ass."

Anubis and Sekhmet had already gone ahead of them. They (Dais and Cale) needed to catch up to them while Kalen was still out. Cye carefully moved downstairs with Kalen in his arms. It wouldn't do for him to drop her when she needed to be delivered to the Zuri Nation safe and whole.

Cale was waiting downstairs with his own bag down at his feet. He was leaning against the wall holding a quiet conversation with his Light counterpart. He pushed off the wall so he could better take Kalen from Cye when he approached them. Cale then leaned back against the wall to balance out holding the lithe body.

Sage glanced over and noticed Kalen's deck was still secured in its case at her waist. He thought that separating the deck of "mysteries" from Kalen would have been crucial and he voiced this aloud.

"Why didn't Dais take away Kalen's cards when he and Kento caught her?" Sage asked.

Cye looked at Kalen's waist and frowned. Because of how he had been holding Kalen, he hadn't seen or felt the deck of cards. Right then Kento came out of the kitchen munching on an apple. Cale opened up the armor mind link to only Cye and Sage.

[I'll show you why.]

He winked at them before calling Kento over. The bearer of Hardrock walked over to stand next to Cye.

"What?" he asked, before biting into his apple.

"I need you to take Kalen's card deck," Cale told him.

Kento shrugged. "Okay."

Kento handed his apple off to Cye before stepping closer to Cale and Kalen. He didn't even question why Cale hadn't just asked Cye or Sage. Cye cautiously took a step backwards while Sage moved further from Cale's side.

Kento reached out to touch Kalen's deck holder which was sitting above and to the side of her right jeans pocket. The second his hand touched the deck holder his eyes rolled back and he slumped to the ground unconscious. Cale glanced down with a harrumph.

"That was disappointing," he murmured.

"What was?" Dais asked as he stepped down off the stairs.

He walked to join the group and looked down at the unconscious body of his comrade.

"I told him to take her cards," Cale said before lifting his gaze up.

Dais raised an eyebrow. He pointed down at Kento.

"That's the result?" Dais asked.

Cale nodded. Dais let out a small snort.

"That _is_ disappointing," Dais commented.

Cye and Sage exchanged looks before Sage spoke up.

"Care to share?" Sage asked.

The two partners-in-crime shared a chuckle before Dais spoke up.

"About two hundred something odd years ago, we caught hold of Kalen while in one of the villages. Cale and I were on either side of her holding her arms down when Sekhmet came up to remove the deck from her belt."

Cale made a small comment that Anubis had been elsewhere.

"So what happened?" Cye asked.

"When his hand touched the holder, his eyes rolled back, his hair changed color, and he was thrown thirty feet backwards and through a large bush of poison ivy."

Unable to control themselves, the two ex-ronins burst out laughing. They started laughing even harder when Cale commented that the hair color change had been to pink. After they finally calmed themselves down, Dais commented that he and Cale needed to get going. The two left with Kalen being carried by Cale while Dais carried both their bags.

Sage glanced down at Kento was still lying on the ground unconscious.

"We should move him," he commented.

Cye glanced down, too, before lifting his head to smirk at Sage. He held up a fist in front of him. Sage raised an eyebrow, but lifted his hand in a fist. They both counted together as they brought their hands down simultaneously. One, two, three.

Sage cursed under his breath. His hand stayed as a fist, but Cye had his hand flat out in front of him. Cye reached over to cover his fist with his open palm. He winked at Sage before turning away and walking off.

"Have fun, Sage."

Sage groaned as he reached down to drag his fallen friend over to the couch.

/…/

It didn't take long for them to reach the Zuri Nation. It was around Midnight when Kalen awoke with a quiet groan. She brought a hand up to her head while slowly rolling from her back to her side. Suddenly, the memories of what had happened came rushing back to her.

Kalen's eyes shot open and she sat straight up. She found herself sitting up on a queen-sized bed in a large bedroom. There were a few pieces of furniture, an open door to a bathroom, another door supposedly leading to the outside, and a pair of double doors which led to a balcony. A glance out the windows of the balcony doors told her she was somewhere within the Nether Realm.

Kalen hissed a few curses in the Ancient language as she swung her legs over the side of the bed and slid off. She glanced about the room. It was very rare that she found herself in a room like this instead of a dungeon cell which only meant one thing.

"I know one of you is _in_ here," she called.

A small chuckle sounded from somewhere in the room. Kalen turned around, her eyes searching around. The chuckle had been too quiet for her to discern which warlord it was. She suspected it was either Dais or Cale; they were the only two who could hide in plain sight.

Her suspicions were confirmed when Dais faded into view from a corner of the room. Her gaze narrowed as he stepped closer but remained a safe distance from her.

"Where am I?" Kalen asked.

Dais chuckled.

"You're home, Kalen," Dais said simply.

Kalen shook her head.

"_No_, _I'm not_," Kalen argued, saying each word slowly in a tone that said she was a force to be reckoned with.

Dais crossed his arms over his chest.

"Welcome to your _new_ home, Kalen. The Zuri Nation."

Kalen's eyes went wide. Glancing out the window, she could now clearly see the flag that represented the Zuri Nation. She let out another curse which caused Dais to chuckle again. Her eyes whipped back around to the illusionist.

"Why am I here?" she demanded.

The dark smile on his face did nothing to calm her nerves.

"A deal was made between us and the Zuri Nation. They did something for us. Now we're doing something for them," he said.

Kalen grimaced. That really didn't sound good. She watched as Dais crossed the room over to the door leading out.

"What have you done?" she murmured.

"We figured out about a year ago that our power alone wasn't enough to break the seal. So we made a deal with the Zuri Nation. They help break the seal and we deliver you to them."

Dais disappeared out the door and locked the door as Kalen slammed her fists down on the door.

"Bastard!" she yelled.

Kalen slid down on the door to the floor. On the other side of the door, Dais leaned back against it with a smirk.

"Pleasant dreams, Kalen."

Back inside the room, Kalen had murmured a few more curses before pushing herself to her feet. She tried the balcony doors and all the windows; she already knew the door was locked. When that didn't work, Kalen withdrew a card from her deck. She wasn't surprised when she couldn't activate her card.

"I thought I smelled the faint aroma of honeydew," she mumbled while returning the card to the deck.

The Zuri Nation, more specifically the King, had discovered many a year ago that honeydew prevented Kalen from activating the special brand of magic of her cards. She could still do a reading with the cards, but that was all. She only hoped the King never shared that piece of news with the warlords; they would probably drown her and her deck in honeydew.

Kalen thought of sitting down and meditating to connect to Griffin or one of the other Council members. However, she felt emotionally drained and knew what she really needed was rest. Against her better judgment, Kalen walked back over to the bed and lay down on top of the bedcovers. She faced the windows as she laid the side of her face on a pillow. Despite her exhaustion, sleep did not come easy to the Ancient.

END OF CHAPTER NINE

**So…? What do you think?**


	11. Chapter 10

**jrzgrl02:** Oh, if you think I'm bad now, just you wait. Yikes! 12 hour shifts? Ooh, you have my sympathies. Who knows what the warlords do and _why_ they do it? As always, I will definitely keep up the cliffhanging.

CHAPTER TEN

When she first woke up, she refused to open her eyes. She listened. For something. The clicking sound of Silver's nails on the kitchen floor; the fluttering of blinds against the open door to the balcony; Sawyer's harmonica. _Anything_.

Sadly, she heard nothing. Kalen slowly opened her eyes and sat up. She mumbled curses in several different languages. She had been hoping last night had been a very detailed nightmare; it wasn't.

Kalen stood up and walked into the bathroom. She used the bathroom, and took the time to wash her hands and face. The cold water managed to wake her up a little more. Sighing, Kalen opened the door and walked out into the bedroom.

She stopped short when she found someone else in the room. Standing in the middle of the room was a tall man with long, silvery hair and dark golden-colored eyes. Upon seeing him, Kalen acted accordingly.

The young Ancient crossed her hands down in front of her with one hand clasping the wrist of the other. She bowed respectfully at the waist to him before standing straight with her arms still crossed.

"Hello Kalen," he said, speaking with a very soft voice.

"Greetings to you, Lord Zuri," Kalen said, keeping her voice neutral.

She was surprised to see a sad smile on his face as he shook his head. He stepped closer with his arms open out in front of him. Kalen stood her ground as he approached her. The man brought his hands up to hold Kalen's hands in his.

Kalen stared at him truly startled as he brought the hands up to place a soft kiss on the knuckles of one of her hands.

"Call me by my given name, Kalen," he told her.

"Okay…Thomas," Kalen replied, still quite unsure of what was going on.

His smile brightened only a little as he turned and guided her to the balcony doors. As they walked closer, the doors unlocked and opened for them. He led her out onto the balcony to stand by the railing. By that time, he had separated their hands so that he held one of her hands in his.

Thomas kept his hand over hers as they stood at the railing. Kalen realized that from the balcony she could see the entire city known as the Zuri Nation. It was gorgeous and the people were good, but she didn't truly belong there. She belonged with her own people.

"I am sorry this has happened."

Kalen stared out over the scene. She knew by the tightening of his hand on hers that his words rang true. However, she waited to speak. She could sense that there was more Thomas wanted to say.

"The deal was made in my absence. My advisors – the cowards that they were! – decided an alliance with the warlords would do our nation good. It was my intention to remain neutral between the Ancients and Warlords. This deal has only forced my hand to realize that there is _no in-between_."

Kalen waited. He wasn't finished. Yet.

"From this day on, the Ancients may consider the Zuri Nation their silent ally. We will help in any way we can and the Ancients are more than welcome here."

Kalen sighed in relief.

"Thank you, Lord Z–, I mean, Thomas. The other Council members will be pleased to hear this," Kalen replied.

"I am only sorry that you cannot leave."

Kalen grew confused. They were allies now. Why couldn't she leave? Thomas must have picked up on her confusion. He continued to explain about the deal that had been made.

"I cannot say sorry enough, child. The pact was made between my former advisors and Talpa's four Dark Warlords. It was signed and sealed…in blood." Kalen gasped. "Yes, I _know_. The pact states that the Zuri Nation, me specifically, would weaken the seal using our ritualistic power, thus allowing the warlords to break the seal. In return, the warlords would deliver you, Kalen McCoy of the Ancients, to us to serve the Zuri Nation for life."

Cold dread seeped into Kalen's bones. A pact written, signed and sealed in blood confined all parties to the deal. In the Mortal Realm, it would not have any affect; the Nether Realm, however, did. This meant that Kalen was bound by the words of the contract, despite her blood not being part of the sealing of it.

"You said you weren't here. How is it that they were able to sign and seal it with your blood, too?" Kalen asked, quietly.

"My youngest child is very sick. We have some of my blood here in storage, should he need it."

Ah. That explained it. Another squeeze of her hand drew her gaze back to the nation leader.

"The warlords believe I have taken you as my wife."

Kalen had to force herself not to make a face. Or gag. Kalen was 167 years old whereas Lord Zuri, or Thomas, was close to 700. While the man looked nice and was very friendly, Kalen would almost rather give Cye a second chance. _Almost_.

I'm going to strangle them the next time we're in the same room, Kalen swore to herself.

Thomas chuckled as he brought Kalen's hand up to his mouth to brush his lips across her knuckles.

"Despite their beliefs, I have no intentions of taking you as my lover. My children bring enough joy in my life. Instead I would like to ask you to care for my youngest children."

"Ask?"

"Yes. Ask. If you do not wish to do this, I will not force your hand."

Kalen thought on this. She nodded her head. She told him she would be willing to watch his younger children.

"Are the warlords still here?" Kalen asked.

Thomas shook his head.

"No. The four of them left early this morning."

Kalen swore quietly to herself while turning her head away. She knew _exactly_ which four had been here and left.

I'm going to hurt them. Yes, I am. Oooh, am I going to hurt them, Kalen thought.

"I only have two more questions."

"Speak your mind, young one."

Kalen took in a deep breath before speaking with a slight shake in her voice.

"Do you mind if I take a look at the contract?" she asked.

Thomas was not surprised she had asked him this.

"Of course. You are welcome to look over it. Should you find a loophole through the agreement, I would very much like you to share it with me," Thomas answered.

Kalen smiled. She knew he would have seen through to the real reason she wanted to look at it.

"Your other question?" he prompted.

"If you consider yourself now my ally, why the honeydew? You know how that…affects me."

Thankfully, the neutrality had prevented Thomas from sharing that knowledge with the warlords.

"I apologize, Kalen. I couldn't take the risk. Your power is strong, possibly even stronger than the armors. I didn't know how you would react, especially after Dais came in carrying you," Thomas told her.

If asked, the blonde probably would have confessed she had thought of using the power of the cards to bust her way out. But then she remembered all the innocents that could be impacted by such a defensive attack.

"You have my word I will only use the cards for readings or simple tricks. Only should someone attack will I use the full force."

Thomas smiled before leaning closer to wrap his arm around her shoulders.

"That is all I ask. While you are here, I want you to feel welcome. Are you hungry?"

"Starving."

Thomas chuckled as he looped Kalen's arm through his and walked them back inside.

/…/

_He was running. _

_He ripped through the woods, past the trees, as a blur. _

_The adrenaline was pumping through him as he pushed himself to move faster._

_A howl ripped through the air._

/…/

Unlike before, Sawyer woke up slowly and quietly. He lay in bed with his eyes open for a few minutes as his mind tried to catch up with his body. With a sigh, Sawyer sat up in his bed. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes before his hand automatically snatched up his glasses from the bedside table.

Sawyer put his glasses on as he climbed off the bed. He walked out of his room and down the hallway. He passed by Griffin's open door and Kalen's closed door.

As he crossed through the penthouse to the kitchen, he spotted Silver fast asleep on the couch. Sawyer wasn't surprised to not see Griffin out on the balcony. The Empath had told him last night he would be leaving early that morning to train with Kai again. So it was just Kalen and Sawyer in The Nest for now.

Sawyer poured himself a bowl of cereal and ate it at the island in the kitchen. He munched on it quietly for a few minutes. The spoon was halfway through his mouth when he felt a tremor run through his body. He brought the spoon back down to the bowl before glancing around the penthouse.

"Something doesn't feel right," he murmured.

Leaving his bowl where it was, Sawyer wandered around the penthouse looking around at everything. He stopped in the hallway between rooms. He turned his head to look at Kalen's door. That's what it was.

It was unusual for Kalen to sleep in. He glanced back out in the living room at the clock. It read as 9:03AM.

Sawyer stepped forward and knocked gently on the door. He was stunned when there was no reply. Kalen was a naturally light sleeper. If she had still been sleeping, she would have been up the second he rapped on the door.

Sawyer slowly opened the door and poked his head in while gently calling Kalen's name. Kalen's room was entirely empty. There were papers all over her desk and the bed was unmade. Of course, the unmade bed wasn't uncommon; this was often how Kalen left her bed.

Starting to get a little nervous, Sawyer reached out to touch the bedcovers. He let out a small gasp. The bedcovers were frigid.

/…/

Kai turned his head. A stream of water was dangling in the air under his hand. Griffin, who was meditating, noticed the quiet and opened his eyes. He watched Kai slosh the water back into the fountain before turning his full attention towards the east side of town. Griffin immediately went on alert.

"Kai, what is it?" he asked, standing.

Kai turned his head back to look at Griffin.

"I think I hear Sawyer," Kai answered.

Griffin raised an eyebrow. This was new. Sawyer must have known his voice would carry through the wind to Kai.

"He's calling for you, Griffin."

Griffin nodded.

"Then I'll go to him."

Griffin was quick to open a door between the realms and step through. He told Kai to standby. He stepped through into the penthouse to find Sawyer pacing back and forth while mumbling to himself. Silver was lying down and whining.

Griffin focused on Sawyer's emotions, causing his eyes to change into a shade of dark blue. Fear; frustration; worry. Griffin reached out to quell his friend's emotions. Sawyer jumped at the contact at his shoulder, whirling around to face Griffin.

"Sawyer, what's wrong?" Griffin asked.

"I don't think Kalen came back last night," Sawyer answered point blank.

Griffin frowned. Both men had gone to sleep early last night. Griffin had told Sawyer that Kalen would return shortly. Sawyer led Griffin down to Kalen's room. When they entered the room, Sawyer motioned to Kalen's bed.

Griffin reached out his hand to touch the bedcovers. He grew alarmed when he felt nothing. If Kalen had slept in her bed at all since waking yesterday morning, he should have felt at least some trace amounts of emotion. Emotions such as irritation (stupid alarm!), peace (ah, a new morning), or sorrow (I was having such a good dream).

"I feel nothing. The covers are cold," Griffin murmured.

In a way, Sawyer knew that Griffin meant the covers were cold in more than one way. Griffin turned with a mildly concerned look on his face.

"We shouldn't jump to conclusions," Griffin said.

"Does she do this often?" Sawyer asked.

Griffin shook his head. "No. She rarely does this. And normally, she would have left a message."

Griffin quickly came up with a plan. He would contact the other Council members and Sawyer would check with Father Christopher; Sawyer was scheduled to volunteer with the house project today. As he threw on his hooded sweater and military jacket, Sawyer hoped that Kalen had just decided to stay somewhere else on a whim.

Sawyer let out a short, quick whistle for Silver to follow. He was anxious to get to the house project.

/…/

It didn't take long to find Father Christopher. The man was standing in the middle of the ground floor of the house. He appeared to be discussing the plumbing with a man Sawyer assumed was a plumber.

"I'll hope you forgive me for bringing my companion, Father Christopher," Sawyer apologized.

Father Christopher chuckled as he clapped Sawyer gently on the shoulder.

"Be not worried, Sawyer. He is welcome to join us. What is his name?" Father Christopher asked as he bent down to pet the canine.

"Silver," Sawyer answered.

"Is he good with children?"

"Yes."

Father Christopher smiled as he stood up.

"Very good. The family for whom we are building this house are here today. They have three small children who adore animals. Would you mind if Silver entertained them?" Father Christopher asked.

"Of course not. I bet he'd enjoy it."

Father Christopher smiled.

/…/

Griffin tried to remain calm as he struggled not to run down the street. He had checked in with the other Council members. None of them had seen Kalen. The last person to see Kalen was Sawyer and it was yesterday in the University cafeteria.

It was hard for the Empath not to let his emotions explode. It was rare that he allowed himself to become emotional enough to affect people without touching them. He had passed a few people on the street who had become affected as he passed. Some had suddenly grown concerned with grief whereas others got frustrated and started spitting curses out.

Griffin stopped to take a few deep breaths. This helped to calm his emotions which were critical to being an Empath. He moved on to the housing project where he knew Sawyer was. He found Silver with a few children who were laughing and running with him. It didn't take him long to locate Sawyer.

Sawyer was working on the banister to the stairs when Griffin approached him. He looked up from his knelt position on a stair with a questioning look on his face. Griffin shook his head before crouching down to his eye level.

"No one has seen her," Griffin whispered.

Sawyer placed the screwdriver down on the stair and turned to fully face the Ancient.

"Should we be worried?" Sawyer whispered back.

Griffin slowly shook his head.

"No. Not yet, at least. Kalen _has_ done this in the past, but, like I mentioned before, she has usually left a note," Griffin replied.

Sawyer frowned.

"Is there anything in particular that makes her do this?" Sawyer asked.

Griffin nodded.

"Usually it's after she's done a reading with her cards. We'll keep an ear out, but we won't worry too badly for the next few days," Griffin explained.

A sudden thought occurred to Sawyer.

"What if the warlords have her?"

Griffin hated to admit that the thought had occurred to him and more than just one other Council member.

"We don't know that they have her. Yet we also don't know they _don't _have her. Rest assured, Sawyer. If they _do_ have her, then we'll know it. They won't be able to resist rubbing it in our faces that she is with them."

/…/

Meanwhile, across town, there was a strong storm brewing. Standing atop the bridge where no one could see them were the warriors of Light and Darkness. The storm centered over the two of them, feeding off the energy of their armors. Sage's eyes glowed eerily in the light of the flashes of lightning.

"It's finally time to play," Sage said, looking at his fellow warlord.

Cale threw his head back and let his dark chuckle echo over the bridge. When he brought his head down, he had a dark smirk on his face. A lone care was driving towards the bridge.

"We each have our assignments," Cale remarked.

Sage followed his gaze to the unsuspecting driver of a blue Prius.

"Let's get started, then."

C-C-CR-CRACK!

END OF CHAPTER TEN

**Enjoy! **


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